OFF THE RECORD

Rip It Up, Issue 47, 1 June 1981, Page 22

OFF THE RECORD

Francis Stark

Since we realise that most of you don't ready anything other than Rip It Up, this month we've arranged a quick flip through a few other Auckland magazines to show you what you're missing out on. .* Top of the stack is the slick new Auckland Metro. It describes itself as 'New Zealand's First City Magazine', and who are we to argue? It's aimed at the lower end of the snob market, with features on such worthwhile subjects as 'lnside Government House: At Home With The Beatties In Auckland' and 'Where . The Top People Live'. What with a story on the making of Top Half, and a gush over Herald journalist Susan Maxwell, the exercise shapes up as a Heme Bay Woman's Weekly. I imagine the genuine quality stuff { Geoff Chappie's China piece, for example, will pretty quickly disappear and I wouldn't be too sure that the whole enterprise won't be down the tube pretty soon after/§BHqEqB Going straight for the throat of the local product, City Girl, is NZ edition of Australian office-girl mag Sheila. This one has a better idea of its place, sticking close to a tried format of clothes, overdressed Sydneysiders and sleazy, sexist boudoir advice. Apart from a laughable dining out 'feature', the most recognisable local colour is given by a rather creepy story on the four men Sheila thought you girls found most fascinating Bryan Staff, Colin Hogg, Kevin Black and Fred Botica let's just leave it at that. It also shows a typical inability to distinguish stories from advertising: are the : dining out and shop features ads or articles? It's hard to guess the likely lifespan of NZ Sheila, it really, depends on how many of you reall want to read some Australian's idea of what makes a 'Red Hot Lover'. Finally in this month's random selection comes something from the other end of the market entirely the possibly defunct Empty Heads, 'Auckland's Only Real Fanzine'. This is genuine : trash sixteen pages which contain more enthusiasm and information than both the other two publications. I haven't seen one around for months, so perhaps the publishers lost their enthusiasm, or started a band instead. If . you're still out there, take this as an order for the next issue, huh?