An Ode to Boom Saloon
On Thursday night I went to a party at St Stephens church in Stockbridge. There was a DJ booth at the organ and the altar was filled with magazines and balloons. The pews were filled with creatives from around Edinburgh and beyond, drinking Brewgooder Clean Water Lager and munching on macaroni pies and cinnamon swirls from Twelve Triangles. In place of the priest and the preacher were Rachel and Jamie, creators of Boom Saloon, a new Edinburgh-based monthly editorial magazine (although that word sounds frivolous, I would call it an exhibition in print form, a scrapbook of creativity perhaps).
As one of Boom Saloon's kickstarter backers (you can watch the amazing Kickstarter campaign video here, produced by Campfire), I received a boom badge, t-shirt, bag, and of course Issue 001 of the magazine. The next day I immediately devoured its content and instantly fell in love. As a fashion communication student, every page inspired a new way of looking at print media, from the unconventional front cover to the juxtaposition of images in double page spreads. The articles are totally engrossing, full of rich ideas from emerging opinionists.
Boom Saloon is:"A magazine to reshape the creative landscape, championing talent of all forms in a movement for good."What does this mean? The magazine covers a huge range of cultural issues from contributors from around the world all from various backgrounds; Boom Saloon does not discriminate.
What's more the team work on different social project with each issue. The first project, supporting underprivileged youth in Muirhouse, is already underway, with Boom Saloon's creators working with the local community.
The launch night was a brilliant spectacle, and full of familiar faces like photographer Ellie Morag and Counterpoint zine editors Sam Bradley and Bethany Thompson. But whats more exciting than any party is the bright future of this enterprise, and I can't wait to see whats in store. Check it out for yourself here!
'Odes' is my new monthly blog post series focussing on celebrating exceptional creative publications that I admire and aspire to, for their gripping journalism, beautiful photography, inspiring layouts and fascinating online features. Have you read my other 'odes' yet?
Photos by David N. Anderson