It would take great covers to make an unreligious magazine reader to search at least six different book stores in a span of two full weeks just to have the July issues of Preview and Esquire. The month is already ending, I know, but these are still sure to be available on your magazine stands until the middle of August.
You know you have a good magazine in your hands when you've read it cover to cover (yes, including the ads and its fine print), despite the saturation of articles on fashion and lifestyle intended for a male audience. Esquire usually has this effect on me.
The magazine celebrates the 40th anniversary of The Beatles concert in Manila by trying to get Ringo Starr's attention. Done with a spotlight on a spray paint portrait of him on their Sgt. Pepper album inspired cover. It's their way of making amends with the former mophead with a double purpose of extending an invitation to the islands.
However, besides the Editor's note and one answer in the interview with British Ambassador Asif Ahmad, the scheme to bring Ringo back doesn't really scream in this more than 100-paged guilty pleasure. I actually expected more participation from Ringo and Beatles fans, really, and not just the BTS and conceptualization of the issue.
This so-called scheme was rooted from Ringo's album release of 'Postcards from Paradise,' where Filipinos from all over the archipelago started to tweet him photos that proves the country's luxury of natural beauty and sights. I first saw Ely Buendia tweeting about this back in April, and I had hoped that the online project had been more put out there (probably more than a page dedicated to it) so more people could jump right into it.
Although, the cover story speaks volumes of why we should take some time to look for photographs of Philippine sceneries and culture that we could boast about and entice Ringo to visit, which is the main idea of the whole #postcardsfromparadise project.
Here's why: Oliver XA Reyes painted a 1966 tapestry that successfully laid out the context of the times down to the modest of details. It included the who's who during the time of the sensational band's visit and what happened from the time of their touchdown, to what was reported as the moment The Beatles ran for their lives.
The article is able to make people understand what really went down during their Manila tour and took into consideration the mopheads' side of the story and comparing it to the reality that was witnessed by Filipinos, so a bigger view of the story can be realized both by Filipino fans and Ringo, if it ever does reach him.
The eight-paged spread was informative, indeed, but if you want to know more about how the Filipino Beatle Mania fans and co-performers felt during the concert, Quijano de Manila's 1966 article and Word of the Lourd's episode on the matter.
Notes & Essays, was of course, unfailingly a jewel of the magazine for me. It's my favorite section. I particularly fancied the essay titled Read and Want by Sasha Martinez, which revealed a bibliophile's downfall. That there is this desire and obsession to embody a fictitious life and a fixation on distancing one's self from reality to be alone with the pages and characters of your books.
Postcards by Luis Katigbak is a must read. It's actually worth it to buy the whole magazine just to be able to read this undeniably creative short story. It simply made me want to cut up my postcards into horizontal strips and hope for a geometric portal to come through.
Meanwhile, two of the most influential fashion bloggers of today @kimcamjones and @garypeppergirl grace the cover of Preview, as they both strut under the California sun. Louis Vuitton booked them both in a plane headed to Palm Springs to play with their jet-setter themed Spring collection.
I'm not really into fashion and seeing the price tags of the luxury goods would make a fresh graduate wish she had one of those items to fund her Master's degree. I mean really, a bag worth six digits? But those luggage-inspired Petite Malle bags are designed to be a minimalist girl's best friend, and there's no doubt about that.
But getting a glimpse of the new LV collection nor the brand's centerfold story on adapting to the globalized world of the internet wasn't why I hunted this issue down. It was simply because Kim Jones was on the front page.
With her flawless and effortlessly balanced feminine and fierce style, nothing makes it difficult to like this elegant beaut (and her Aussie accent). Most of her featured photographs already resonate with her posts on Instagram, but just as always, this set shows a lot of her colorful-and-game-for-anything personality (sans her usual muse of the ocean vibe). I just love her.
Avid Instagram users are also in for a treat with this July issue as they spill some of the secrets of the most influential app users in the Philippines. You'll find everything from following tips, to content, and even their filter formulas. It's a sure treat for all the OC and artsy users out there who want their flat lays and entire feed to be as clean, consistent, and captivating as those of their account pegs.
Preview was right about one thing, Filipinos of today speak at least three languages: Filipino, English, and Emoji. Although the article on this was pretty short, it came with an emoji-inspired photo set that featured the bold, bright, and pop-colored creations of Kate Spade that was of course still on point with their color-block and print gaming.
The magazines dealt with two different timeframes: the past and the present. One that makes you wish that you were there to witness it and another that informs you a bit of how you could live today.
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