Skill Shot Pincast Corner
by Kayla Greet
For the past three years Graham Klym and I have hosted a podcast companion to this here zine. We call it the Skill Shot Pincast. We typically have a guest from the Seattle scene to chat with us for roughly an hour, though sometimes we reach beyond our vast community to gauge the temperature in pinball scenes around the world. Some of our big-time past guests include Ed Robertson of Barenaked Ladies and former NBA all-star Todd MacCulloch.
If you are still uninitiated, or if you’re just behind because you’re binging Serial or something, you’ve settled your eyes in the right place. Here’s a rundown of what we’ve been up to on mic since the last issue of Skill Shot, and a little beyond.
63 – Jordan Semrow joins us for his third appearance to play Pinball 20 Questions and compare and contrast the growing Seattle scene and burgeoning Wisconsin scene.
62 – Maureen Hendrix details her experience playing in the Women’s World Championships in Vegas as well as her past year hosting Babes in Pinland, Seattle’s first monthly women’s tournament.
61 – Drop Target Zine: Artists Jon Chad and Alex Longstreth walk us through their journey from pinball fanzine to pinball omnibus. They recently published a book with all seven Drop Target Zines, Dream Machines, interviews, and autobiographical comics. It’s an incredible feat and a must-have for any pinball fan.
59 – Avout Vander Werf is our guest and he shares his storied history in Seattle’s pinball scene as the owner of Shorty’s, the longest running barcade in the city.
57 – Pinball on the Plains: Bill and Emily Brooks of Fargo Pinball talk to us about starting and operating a private pinball club akin to the 24-Hour Fitness of flipping.
56 – Bobby Conover returns to the show to give us the lowdown on his latest operating location, Coindexter’s in Greenwood. Learn about his process procuring and shopping pins before they go on route, and what it takes to maintain the high quality that 20XX Amusements has in spades.
54 – Andrew W.K.: Inspirational rock and roller Andrew W.K. takes a moment out of his recording schedule to talk to us about his fixation on the silver ball, growing up going to Pinball Pete’s in Michigan, and owning pinball machines himself. Get some solid life advice on how to achieve high kicks and effervescence in everything.
53 – Brad and Gordon: our three-time returning guests and founders of Skill Shot, stop by to give the listeners the lowdown on the Northwest Pinball and Arcade Show. It’s become a fond tradition that we look forward to nearly as much as attending the convention.
60, 58, and 55 – On these three, Kayla and Graham discuss the local scene and look back on 2017 (ep. 60); hype the 10-year anniversary of the Skill Shot zine (58); and report on Kayla’s Replay FX adventure in Pittsburgh, where she played in the world’s largest pinball tournament with over 800 players and squeezed into the big money finals! (55).
There you have it. Hours of our voices delivering some of the best (and worst) jokes in a pinball landscape littered with talented movers and shakers in the Seattle scene and beyond. You can subscribe to us in iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud, and anywhere RSS feeds are offered. Take us with you on your commute!