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Black Static No. 1 - September 2007
02/02/2008 . Source: Tomas L. Martin 
bi-monthly magazine: UK publisher/editor address: Andy Cox, TTA Press, 5 Martins Lane, Witcham, Ely, Cambridgeshire CB6 2LB. Price: £ 3.99 (UK). ISSN: 1753-0709). Buy Black Static in the USA - or Buy Black Static in the UK  check out website: www.ttapress.com
'Black Static' used to be known as 'The Third Alternative' before owners TTA Press purchased 'Interzone'. Focusing on dark fantasy and horror with less Science Fiction than before, the magazine has been re-named and re-branded. This first issue is the result.
The art is good if a little too similarly dark and difficult to see. The flickering televisions and flies are reminiscent of post-apocalyptic themes such as the video game 'Fallout'. The layout is unobtrusive and stylish. The issue features six short stories, four opinion pieces plus extensive reviews of both video and book releases.
Towards the end is a featurette on Michael Marshall Smith, whose work 'Spares' and 'One Of Us' I rate amongst my favourites. This also includes reviews of both of his new novels as well as an insightful interview. This feature will be a key part of what makes 'Black Static' a good read if they continue getting in excellent interviewees.
The columns and reviews are well-written and the columns are interesting, especially those discussing SF in the media and how it could be changed. The reviews are mostly horror-based which isn't my forte but they seemed to give a good analysis of the titles reviewed.
The stories are dark and vivid and fit together well in the theme of the magazine. I admired 'Votary' by M. K. Hobson and 'Lady Of The Crows' by Tim Casson. 'Acton Undream' by Daniel Bennett and 'My Stone Desire' by Joel Lane didn't grab me as much but they are both still solid reads.
The second story in the volume, 'Pale Saints And Dark Madonnas' by Jamie Barras, where a man comes to visit a sorceress in modern Rio, appealed to me in theory and deserves credit for the audacity of the setting and descriptions but I found it a little too confusing and disjointed.
The best story is also the first in the magazine. Simon Avery's 'Bury The Carnival', where a reporter comes to interview Charousek, a puppeteer that seems to bring his marionettes alive. The story takes a dark turn when the reporter finds she has more invested in the law trying to destroy Charousek's creations than she realised. Avery writes with slick, chilling prose and this story will stick in my head for a while.
'Black Static' has made a promising debut here and it will be interesting to see how it continues over the next few years. It's difficult to say whether it's yet worth subscribing to but it's definitely worth picking up a single issue.
Tomas L. Martin
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