Like Playboy or Esquire, Stop Smiling distinguished itself on the magazine racks with its multiple monthly covers and long form interviews. So, when it released a final issue last year, many mourned the loss. But Stop Smiling has transformed itself into a publishing house. Their first book is out now. It’s by Dave Tompkins and it’s titled How to Wreck a Nice Beach: The Vocoder from World War II to Hip-Hop. Publisher and editor JC Gabel stopped by recently to talk about the switch from magazines to books. He says partnerships with New York-based companies Melville House Publishing and Random House make their independent enterprise possible.

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Dave Tompkins’ blog
Vocoder Fun with Dave Tompkins

Music Button:  Audion, “Uvular”, from the CD Suckfish, (Spectral Sound)