BettyBettizzle
11/18/08

Pretty much what smithjul said. Also, the little
subversive imp in me really enjoyed the stickers.
I appreciate that Volume One has a sense of humor
and uses the incoming information to consider for
future issues instead of taking it personnally.

Frank
11/17/08

I like the ads, I like the magazine. Life is
constantly evolving. I can't use a shirt, but it
is genius. Ironic shirts, heh.

*Walks around wearing shirt*
Passerby: Hey, I LIKE Volume One!
You: Me too :)
Passerby: What's with the shirt, then?
You: No no, it's ironic, like I'm making fun of
people who ACTUALLY say this sincerely! :D
Passerby: lol
You: lol

smithjul
11/12/08

I'm going to put my two cents in...in favor of the
ads. If I'm reading a national publication I view
the ads as filler, but in a local publication like
V1, I see them as an important public service.
Sure, I'd like to see less of the glossy plastic
surgery spa ads, but I like to see who chooses to
use VI for advertising and that makes me more
likely to patronize that business. It's often how
I find out about new businesses in the area.

That said, I do miss some of the more fun, quirky
articles from the early days. I just bust open my
five year anniversary book every now and then and
enjoy. Everything evolves though and so has V1.
Keep up the good work and thanks for all you do.

Karline
11/12/08

From the post: "And hey! What else would a
bourgeois capitalist rag do but co-opt the idea,
steal the work of the original artist, and slap it
on a t-shirt? Anyone interested? You know us, the
merchant class just trying to make a buck."

Made the commie in me chuckle.

Reminds me of when some UAC folks ordered "I was
misquoted by The Spectator" T-shirts. Got all
weird about it when I tried to order one.

James
11/12/08

Hang in there V1... I love you! I wish I could
write a 5 paragraph response right now but I'm
just not feeling it. Keep up the good work and
know that you're doing lots of good things for EC.

Mei
11/12/08

I will pay for this t-shirt or rag!

SolarUpNote
11/12/08

I want a "Capitalist Rag" t-shirt too.

As far as I'm concerned, V1 has gotten better
over the years.

NickMeyer
11/12/08

This is great, thank you “soundguy.” Quite
honestly this is exactly what we were hoping to
see from this post, more thoughtful and meaningful
criticism and feedback.

Yes, V1 “the publication” has changed, and so
has V1 “the organization.” Because of some of
the growth of the “organization,” including
our various events (the concert series, cinema
series, chalkfest, idea lounge, pillow fight,
etc.), the addition of a more robust website, and
other peripheral activities, perhaps at times its
been more difficult for us to maintain what you
might have liked about the printed publication at
first. We really are doing the best we can with
what resources are available. And as much praise
as we receive for our efforts in the community, we
are all too aware that we’re not bulletproof and
we know there are many ways we could be SO much
better on many fronts: not even just the printed
mag. And we’re also aware that there might be
people out there like you who know it too.

Not that this was your only point, but it’s
important to note that Volume One is not just
about the music scene, not even close. It’s
about a larger community than that alone and has a
much broader approach to advancing the culture of
this area, and that is something I honestly
believe a lot of the music scene diehards have
failed to understand about V1. Is the music scene
important to the culture of this town –
absolutely, without question. But I think the
purveyors of the music scene here have heard the
same sorts of criticisms from this community time
and time again about how to be more relevant, but
it often falls on deaf ears (no pun intended). So
none of us are infallible here.

To be clear, other than the occasional special
section we have not “adapted our content to
appease the businesses” and I do feel like that
is unfair. If there’s a problem with our
content, it’s not that – because concern about
advertising is just not in our editorial process.
But if we’re going to exist at all, there has to
be revenue, and unless you (and several thousand
others) are willing to pay a few bucks every two
weeks to buy a magazine that IS what you’re
looking for, then ads are going to be a part of
our focus from now until the end.

Thanks again though Soundguy, really. Your
comments (and anyone else’s) will not be in
vain. They will be heard, discussed, and heartfelt
changes are even likely. But unless it’s because
of the economy, you will not see less ads, and
we’re not going to apologize for trying to build
a sustainable business that can continue to serve
the Chippewa Valley.

That said, we encourage more comments from any
direction…

Just a soundguy, what do I know?
11/12/08

While I was always a supporter of V1 in the early
days I would like to put out support for the
statement on the stickers. Although I did not
create these stickers, and honestly do not care
who did, I think there is large section of this
community who feels let down by what V1 has
become. At one point, for me, I looked forward to
each month's issue because the writing was witty
and entertaining, and the push for all things arts
and entertainment in the city was second to none.
I always had a copy with me in my bag I carried as
well as another stashed in my house just so I
would always have access to next weekends' show
schedules. The band write-ups offered an exciting
look at bands from out of town and were written by
people that knew music... or at least knew how to
review music and make it interesting. And I will
admit that a number of stories throughout each
issue would have me laughing about as hard as
anyone can laugh.

But somewhere along the line V1 has had to adapt
its content to appease the businesses paying the
bills. And for what? Advertisements that now
consume what seems like 50% of the page space in
each issue. The stories have lost a lot of their
youthful wit and the band write-ups generally feel
forced and only included to allow the mag to
continue to promote itself as being a part of the
music scene. If I even pick up a copy of the
newest issue it is to consume a couple minutes of
boredom... but it generally takes no more than
that couple minutes to once again be let down.
The magazine, as a whole, feels uninspired and
very much past its prime. It is understood that
people like Phoenix Park and the Farmer's Market.
It is understood that Downtown Eau Claire is a
cool place to be and the urban sprawl on the south
side is from the devil. But you need to
understand that the people who are voicing their
opinions with these stickers would probably agree
with me in feeling like it's time for V1 to know
that the mag has lost any sort of personal
connection with the people it originally sought
out to connect with. It has lost its credibility
as being anything unique and instead feels like
the written word of an Eau Claire Tourism Bureau
public action committee.

I have nothing against anyone who works for the
publication and don't have the time or interest to
make my own arts/culture magazine... I'm just
voicing my opinion in hopes to see some sort of
conversation created so that the opinions of those
who generally don't voice them can be heard. It's
your mag... do what you want.

Oh and Nick, it was nice to see you out at the
show on Friday. We do those every weekend and
would love to have you, or your staff, back
sometime.

MikePaulus
11/12/08

disappointed - This isn't garbage, this is someone
in the community taking time out of their day to
make a point in an interesting way. Personally, I
think there are a lot of other things happening in
the world right now more deserving of (at least)
this level of engagement, but at least someone out
there is trying something, and it’s a free
country. They’re engaging their community more
than most people do. This particular post is just
something to take lightly. It’s just a web post,
after all, not a big argument. If it feels
“adolescent” to you, fair enough.

As far as “halting” the commenting on our
Best Of poll, you don’t stop other people’s
conversations. You just don’t. And while a bunch
of funny stuff came from that commenting, we
weren’t laughing about it. We took the whole
thing very, very seriously.

dissapointed
11/12/08

Why would V1 feed into this garbage? Is there no
publication in this area that I can advertise my
business without associating it with adolescent
bickering or unprofessionalism? It seems as of
late this publication conspires to separate the
community rather than have it gel. You let people
“boo” others in your recent “best of poll”
and instead of halting the competition, you let
the Jerry Springer show go on and laughed. Way to
bring the best out of our community.

Peter
11/12/08

Why don't you just make official Volume One rags
with this on it? I suppose that's supposed to be
the thing you put out every two weeks, though.
That could get confusing.

James
11/11/08

Hot dog! I love scavenger hunts. And I would also
buy a t-shirt (if it were black).

capitalist rag
11/11/08

Wait! Does it come in official V1 black?

capitalist rag
11/11/08

I want a shirt too!