Just like fashion trends and reruns of “Friends,” elements of life from the 1990s are making a comeback in Fort Collins’ local music scene.

For the last six months, fans of Fort Collins artists, local punk rock and hardcore musicians and visual media have embraced Scrapped Magazine, an independent, monthly “zine” that operates under the banner of nonprofit Blast N Scrap.

The idea for Scrapped Magazine began around this time last year, when former Collegian reporter Max Hogan interviewed Michael Gormley (who is referred to by most as “Blasti”), the founder and executive director of Blast N Scrap, for a story about the nonprofit. Hogan said they had enjoyed working on the arts and culture desk at The Collegian and wanted to see more people covering local music in the area. 

“I brought (the idea) up to Blasti, and he was immediately on board,” Hogan said. “Blast N Scrap is an organization that already works with local musicians and artists, so they were happy to include me under the umbrella of that.”

Scrapped aims to be more than just a platform for coverage of the local music scene — the publication allows local, young artists, writers and photographers a welcoming space to share and improve on their work while documenting a unique and thriving subculture in Northern Colorado.

“I feel like magazines are a really cool way to keep track of history, and it just feels really cool to be a part of something that’s almost like writing your own history.” -Maddy Erskine, Scrapped Magazine producer, editor and writer

“For me, it helps me really reflect and be, I think, sometimes more present and get more excited about things,” Hogan said of working on Scrapped, “and really just kind of step back and realize what a great thing local music and art really is and how awesome it is to be part of the community where people are making great music and great artwork.” 

Early on in the idea process, Hogan brought their idea up to Maddy Erskine, last year’s arts and culture editor at The Collegian. Because of their previous experiences, Erskine took on leading Scrapped’s writing desk, and Hogan handled coordination and administrative duties alongside design. Hogan then recruited Maxwell Hendrickson, a local photographer, as the head of photography, and the zine started to fall into place.

Gormley said the zine is the first Blast N Scrap program that has been able to work completely by itself. Thanks to the nonprofit, the zine is sustained by a modest budget and otherwise operates independently.

“Hendrickson said some volunteers or people who want to submit art to the zine have said they’re afraid because they think their work isn’t good enough or “cool enough” for it, but “it’s not as scary as people make it out to be.”

“They’re on the ball,” Gormley said. “I don’t think I’ve ever had a team come and do their research the way that they did. … Their eyes were already on, ‘I’m going to see if I can turn this into a legitimate business within the nonprofit parameters,’ and they were good at it.” 

The Scrapped team puts out each edition on the first Friday of every month and usually prints around 30 to 40 copies using Erskine’s printer. Scrapped is available to purchase for $4.50 per copy at Blast N Scrap shows, through a subscription (at a discounted price) or by messaging the zine creators on social media.

Scrapped operates through the work of volunteers, who get paid about $10 per assignment, and Scrapped also accepts submissions of art, photos, poetry and more. Scrapped accepts absolutely anyone who wants to be involved, and those interested should head over to their website to get in touch.

Hendrickson said some volunteers or people who want to submit art to the zine have said they’re afraid because they think their work isn’t good enough or “cool enough” for it, but “it’s not as scary as people make it out to be.”

“I don’t see why there needs to be an intimidation factor because I’m a hobbyist photographer that still works at Trader Joe’s on the side,” Hendrickson said. “I’m not some dude that’s for Rolling Stone or anything.”

“We just want to support your art,” Erskine said.

Erskine said the zine is really special to them — and everyone involved — because of how connected to history it can be. 

“I feel like magazines are a really cool way to keep track of history, and it just feels really cool to be a part of something that’s almost like writing your own history,” Erskine said.

Zines have always been a part of the Fort Collins punk scene, Erskine said, especially in the ‘90s, and it’s something they hope will continue even if the original creators all need to move on from it.

“We decided that this is something we want to be passed down from generation to generation,” Erskine said. “We’d love for Scrapped to stay alive beyond us and always be something for the community. Everyone will always have some outlet if they want to show their creativity. … We just want everyone to feel like they have a voice, especially with our Blast N Scrap community.”

Reach Serena Bettis at entertainment@collegian.com or on Twitter @serenaroseb.