I don’t want to encourage any more doom upon Keith, but part of me has to admit that some of his most powerful writing comes with the revisiting, stewing in, and examining some pretty dire shit in his life. This issue subtitled “Everything in Ruins! (Hooray!)” is pretty much a rollercoaster ride through bummerville (along with a very funny bit equating the new Tim Armstrong album as porn, even sandwiching the record between Burial and Career Suicide, like it was a double dong between two packages of condoms). The story that struck me the strongest follows a young Keith in the back of a rusted-up car in the Northwestern drizzle. In the front seat are his mother and Keith’s Mother’s Bad Choice Boyfriend. The boyfriend is getting drunk, driving them around to pick up another friend. Not to give away the whole story, but young Keith stands up to the boyfriend and is struck down, and young Keith takes it, smoldering in the inability to protect his mother. What I appreciate about Avow, is that even when Keith’s getting beat the fuck up (emotionally, mostly), he’s still clawing to become a better person, to not dissolve, and to hoist his humanity up to his ideals, even if he’s falling short of his own expectations. And that’s a powerful testament, no matter what the medium. –Todd (Keith Rosson, 1615 SE Main St., Portland, OR97214)