Please read this carefully before submitting reviews.

IMPORTANT: send all reviews, requests etc… to my address ONLY.

First of all, thanks a lot for your help!

If you have any records that do not appear in the FLEX! book, please send me a list of these records. Don't send any reviews yet!! There is a good chance that I (or someone else) already wrote a review for that specific record, so your work was in vain. I will get back to you and let you know which records from your list haven't been reviewed yet.

You may review any records by US American and Canadian bands and artists, provided they somehow fall into the punk/hardcore category. Looking at the reviews in the FLEX! book will give you an idea. You can review 7”s, 12”s, LPs and CDs, but please no tapes or CD-Rs! (except for mentioning cassette versions of vinyl/CD releases).

Please include all information you have, but don't be desperate if you don't know about the amount pressed etc. Just write what you know, others might fill in the blanks.

I would really like to get a copy of the picture sleeves of the records you review. If you have a scanner, you can send a .JPG file. File sizes of around 100 kB will work just fine.

Here's a sample review to give you an idea how it should look like:

• [1] The Slimy Teenagers - punk as shit 7”/12”
• [2] slimy records. 001 / 3 tracks / may 15th 1979
• [3] RI (12”): UK: teenage records. 001 / 1984 (bootleg)
• [4] Great singalong punk rock from NYC, cool melodies and a tight production make this an obscure classic. -7-.
• [5] + lyric sheet and sticker. 200 made of the original (7” only), 100 copies on blue vinyl. Reissue (12” only) has a different sleeve, no sticker.
• [6] Feat. Bob X (The Exterminators) on bass.
• [7] i'm a punk / you're a punk, too // we are all punks
• [8] Hier kommt dann das deutsche Review, falls Ihr Deutsch koennt… was wohl die wenigsten sein werden.

• [1]: Band name and record title. Include all issued formats on this line.
• [2]: Record label, cat.no., number of tracks, date issued (mostly just the year, but include more detailed information if you have it. If you are guessing about the year indicate that with a question mark).
• [3]: Include reissues, bootlegs, etc., including the country of their origin (unless they're from the US). If it's a bootleg make a (bootleg) note at the end of this line.
• [4]: Review. Keep as short as possible, but not TOO short. People should still get an idea how the thing sounds like. 3-4 sentences should be OK for most records. Also, try to be as objective as possible. Don't give a record a bad review just because you don't like the musical STYLE. Instead, try to say something like: “I don't like grunge rock, but if you do you'll probably like this” (if you think there are people who might like it). Don't just say “This sucks”. Try to explain WHY it sucks. Is the singer real lame? Are the melodies real old? Production's real poor? At the end of the review, give a rating between -1- (worst) and -10- (best). Please remember that -1- is a rating reserved for the absolutely WORST stuff, as well as -10- should be used for god-like, groundbreaking, all-time classics only. -8- is already an excellent record! Please use the existing reviews to get some orientation. The rating system might seem silly to you, but I think it helps people a lot. I did one issue of the printed FLEX! zine without ratings just to test the reactions, and the vast majority of readers demanded them back.
• [5]: Additional information: List all inserts that come with the record. Lyric sheets, booklets, stickers, catalogues, and other gimmix. If you know how many have been pressed, write the number down here, but ONLY if you know it. Don't just guess! If you're not 100% sure, write “500 (?) made”. Write down all special editions (colored vinyl etc.) you're aware of. List the differences between the original and reissues. This is very important in the case of counterfeits, so people know how to tell the original from the bootleg.
• [6]: Did the band have any members that have played in other known bands before or afterwards? Also, “famous” producers (Albini, Zientara etc.) or other trivia belong here.
• [7]: track listing. separate the record A and B sides with //. For multiple record sets, separate the records with ///.
• [8]: German review… if you speak German :) (if not, I'll translate it).

OK, that's about it. If there are any more questions, just ask me, or look at the reviews in the FLEX! book.

Hope to hear from you soon!