Scamming in San Francisco and Buenos Aires

Erick Lyle at Get Lost Travel Books
June 4 at 7 pm
1825 Market Street in San Francsico
(betwn Valencia and Guerrero)

Erick Lyle's Scam 'zine is a classic. Documenting
squats and anti-war protests, creating art and music projects, Lyle
and his friends were definitely not passive observers of San
Francisco's recent history. With the publication of his book, "On the
Lower Frequencies: A Secret History of the City," Lyle's writings are
now collected and accessible. In his latest Scam #6, "In the Streets
of Buenos Aires" Lyle hangs out with and introduces us to some of the
best stencil and graffiti artists in Buenos Aires. At Get Lost, he'll
read from his book and Scam #6, and show images of some of Buenos
Aires' stencil art.

Erick Lyle started writing in the 1990s, though I only first heard of
him when I read his brilliant zine, Scam # 5 ½, "Hunt's Donuts, the
Epicenter of Crime." In just a few pages, Lyle brilliantly
historicized the old donut shop with the "Open 25 Hours" sign at the
corner of Mission and 20th Streets. From Mission Street's 1940s
hey-day to its economic decline around the time Mission Street was
torn up to lay the BART tracks, Hunt's fortune's followed that of the
street. By the time it closed, Hunt's, straddling the border between
the Norteño and Sureño gangs, was known more for petty crime than
donuts. Not only was his writing sharp and concise, but Lyle's
memories of hanging out at Hunt's was part of his history of Mission
Street. After Scam #5 ½, I read a couple older editions of Scam. What
became clear is that Lyle has a talent for making history while being
able to chronicle it. Whether in response to the dot-com boom, the
lead up to the Iraq invasion in 2003, or other events that affected
the life on the streets of San Francisco, Lyle and his friends
challenged the powers that be while creatively engaging with people on
the street. Lyle's writings are now collected in On the Lower
Frequencies: A Secret History of the City. The book launch party two
weeks ago at Counterpulse was so crowded that I couldn't get in. I'm
looking forward to seeing him talk about life in San Francisco as well
as the graffiti stencil artists he hung out with recently in Buenos
Aires.