An all-new, 32 page floppy comic book from Fantagraphics.  Underground and horror comics traditions merge in this creepy book full of suffering and angst.  Immerse your pain in the Insect Bath...

As the cover states, this is a compendium of comics, writing and music.  This time around Unicorn Mountain is a chunky 206-page squarebound squareformat anthology printed in umber ink on flat white paper of (mostly) Pittsburgh culture that contains an eclectic 21-track CD, all for less than the prie of the average stand-alone CD!  Made possible in part by a grant from the seemingly omnipresent Sprout Fund, this issue is a big step up from the first issue.  Highlights include "Thousands of Mistakes" by Frank Santoro, "Niran and Theola" by Curt Gettman and Owl Kahol Systems (a pseudonym for a local comics artist), "Like Lace" by JULIACKS, "Rock & You" by Paulette Poullet, a two-page untitled piece by Brian Maruca and Jim Rugg of Street Angel fame, and a fistful of untitled illustrations by Paper Rad.  The material on the CD ranges far and wide and includes new tunes by Modey Lemon, Oneida, Ex-Models, Elf Power and Pink Mountaintops.  The Karl Hendricks Rock Band's "The Last Uncompromising Hardcore Band" will have you tapping your toes and singing along before you even realize it. 

ONE COPY (includes CD) Gone? or mislaid during the move? Not sure.... but can't find :(

This issue features more full color comics in Prismacolor colored pencil by its editor, Austin English, who has also, it seems, managed to convert publisher, Dylan Williams, to the way of the crayon, as his contribution (Williams is an established comics writer/artist as well as publisher) is his first full color work and it is rendered entirely in oil pastel.  Other notable contributions to this anthology publication are a historical overview of the works of legendary children's author/illustrator, Lois Lenski -- also by Austin English --  and, the highlight for us, a lengthy illustrated interview (conducted by fellow cartoonist and pal, Jeremy Onsmith) with the one and only John Hankiewicz, who proves himself to be as articulate about his work as he is in control of it.  The issue comes to a close with a full color back cover illustration by Copacetic customer, Juliacks.  Recommended for fans of MOME who are ready to adventure a bit farther afield, and anyone else interested in the intersection of comics, art and illustration.

While we've been selling Architecture of an Atom in the shop since its initial release – and in fact hosted a release party for it – we, apparently, neglected to list it on the site.  So, we are hereby rectifying the situation.

Juliacks is a multidisciplinary artist and, in fact, Architecture of an Atom is a work that spans all her disciplines.  In addition to the – quite substantial – comics form it takes here,  Architecture of an Atom also also comprises works in film, theater, performance, painting, drawing, print-making and possibly others!  And so truly merits its designation as a gesamtkunstwerk – and effectively serves to update this term and bring it into the 21st century, as our lived environment today is so wildly different form that of the 19th century when this term was first coined.  

Architecture of an Atom is a whirlwind portrait of a psyche coming to terms with its life and times.  It can make for a difficult reading experience.  Any reader looking for narrative or theme will likely struggle for some time and many readers will find the work opaque, yet those who are able to let go of demands and preconceptions of what a graphic novel should be may be rewarded by the experience of direct psychic confrontation that is on offer.  Fans of Brecht Evens, and others, who feel like pushing even further into interiority should at least check this out, and the creator and publisher have both made that easy to do!  

Juliacks has created a website that provides an overview of the project in its entirety, HERE.  And publisher, 2dCloud has provided a very generous preview of the graphic novel, HERE.  Check them out and see what you think!  And, if you like what you see, we've made it a bit easier to take the plunge by offering an extra-strength discount on this fairly pricey – but quite hefty – tome.