As we did one year [1] and two years [2] ago, here is a list of the most-read articles on the Datacide site from 2013.
1. You’re too Young to Remember the Eighties – Dancing in a Different Time [3] by DJ Controlled Weirdness (from Datacide 10) – the second most read article in the previous year has seen an increasing readership over the year, and in fact over the last few years. Neil’s account of the underground dance scene in London from before the acid house days is giving insights that are otherwise rarely glimpsed and brings up fond memories for those who remember this period.
2. Dope Smuggling, LSD Manufacture, Organised Crime & the Law in 1960s London [4] by Stewart Home (from Datacide 11) is also enjoying a steadily rising readership. This was the article version of his talk at the 2008 datacide conference, up from number 3 the previous year.
3. From Subculture to Hegemony: Transversal Strategies of the New Right in Neofolk and Martial Industrial [5] by Christoph Fringeli, which was the most read piece in 2011 (from Datacide 11) and number 5 in 2012. Still wondering who reads this and related articles – Anti-Fascists? Fans of industrial music? Fans of Evola or Jünger?
4. COIL – Interview from 1986 plus Introduction [6] by Christoph Fringeli/John Balance. Being linked to from Wikipedia and the official Coil site this is still the most read post on datacide attracting a steady readership. This year at number 4, just like in 2012.
5. Anti-Semitism from Beyond the Grave – Muslimgauze’s Jihad [7] by CF has not previously been amongst the 10 most read articles, but seems to be gaining more interest over time.
6. The Brain of Ulrike Meinhof [8] by CF is another text with a a steady readership, both previous years at number 8.
7. The Dog’s Bollocks – Vagina Dentata Organ and The Valls Brothers (Interview) [9] by John Eden. Exclusive interview with Jordi Valls is the top post from the Datacide 12 paper issue from 2012.
8. What the Fuck? – Operation Spanner [10] by Jo Burzynska from Datacide 2 – and thus the oldest article originally published in Datacide in this list. Was already number 7 in the 2011 and 2012 charts.
9. WE MEAN IT MAN: [11] Punk Rock and Anti-Racism – or: Death In June not Mysterious. Stewart Home’s article on Death In June from Datacide 7, which was number 4 in 2011 and number 6 in 2012.
10. 10 Years after the Kosovo War – The Making of a Failed State [12] by CF, an online-only text.
While it’s not surprising that no posts from the new Datacide 13 are in these charts – we only started publishing the articles on the web in the last couple of weeks – the list shows that the list of the most read articles is quite similar to the lists of the last two years. Only one interview from Datacide 12 – The Dog’s Bollocks – made it into the top 10, and only two other texts made it that was not yet in the last two lists – the Making of a Failed State – which was published online only in 2009 and the Muslimgauze piece from Datacide 9.
Some other articles were widely received such as Communisation Theory and the Question of Fascism [13] from Datacide 12 – but it was much more read on other sites – like libcom – where it was re-posted than here.
From the recently posted first articles from Datacide 13 Emencified Shrill Out – Nomex at the Controls [14] is getting a lot of hits right now! So check it out and browse the site for many other great articles.
Overall the average readership of this site is growing steadily every year, while the sales of the paper seem to be steady (a bit too early to judge number 13). What is missing though are subscriptions of which there are very few. Please consider taking out a subscription – you’ll be amongst the first to receive the printed copy with a large mailout done right after we finish printing. Subscriptions are EUR 12.00 for 3 issues and you can include back issues. It makes the logistics of getting copies out to readers a lot easier than orders of single copies (which are obviously welcome too). If you prefer to read datacide digitally please consider making a donation.
We are currently preparing a limited re-issue of Datacide 9 (from which 3 of the above listed articles are from) which will be available this month both in print and as a .pdf.