Podcast Summary: The Creative Boom Podcast

Episode: From Rave Culture to Print Revival: Paul Benney on Jockey Sl*t, Bugged Out! & Disco Pogo
Host: Katy Cowan
Guest: Paul Benney
Date: October 12, 2025

Episode Overview

In this engaging episode, host Katy Cowan sits down with Paul Benney—the co-founder of legendary dance music magazine Jockey Slut, long-running club night Bugged Out!, and, more recently, the acclaimed print revival Disco Pogo. The conversation spans Paul's journey through the dance music and print media scenes, the highs and lows of independent publishing, how club culture has evolved, and why print still matters in a digital age. It's a candid, often funny, sometimes emotional conversation full of insights into creative resilience, adaptability, and staying true to your passion—no matter how much the media landscape shifts.

Key Topics & Discussion Points

The Magic of Print Media and Music Magazines

Timestamps: 02:39-06:17

• Both Katy and Paul reminisce about the weekly ritual of buying music magazines pre-Internet.
  • Paul: “It was exciting, literally exciting when they came out on a Wednesday, because it was the only way you could find out about music other than the radio.” (03:22)
• The influence of NME, Melody Maker, and Sounds on shaping their taste and identity.
• The shift from trusted reviews driving record sales to today's streaming culture.
  • Paul: “If you read a review in the NME and it was said that an album was a 9 out of 10...without hearing a note, you went to the shop and you bought the record. Which just sounds crazy...nowadays.” (04:06)
• Observations about how younger generations now experience music and festivals with digital prep, like Spotify playlists.

Staying Connected Across Generations

Timestamps: 06:17-10:01

• Paul discusses sharing music and live events with his children, noting the blend of generational tastes and experiences.
  • Paul: “They’ve got their own taste...I have to admit, I’d never knowingly heard a Gracie Abrams or a Faye Webster song ever before. So I saw them for the first...I heard them for the first time there and they were both great.” (08:18)
• Balancing sharing his own influences (Bowie, Talking Heads) while letting his kids discover their own.

The Birth and Rise of Jockey Slut Magazine

Timestamps: 10:01-20:46

• Paul details his early obsession with becoming a music journalist, college days at Manchester Poly, and the genesis of Jockey Slut in the midst of the ‘Madchester’ boom.
  • Paul: “I was 22, obsessed with music in this incredible place...let’s start our own magazine.” (14:05)
• The truly DIY approach: scraping together a few hundred pounds, leveraging college resources, convincing local clubs for ad space before the mag even existed, and hand-selling copies to record shops.
• The role of trust, energy, and (sometimes) naivety in getting started—and the physicality of print production in the pre-digital era.

Running Bugged Out! and the Club Scene

Timestamps: 22:47-32:25

• Transitioning from magazine life into promoting club nights, almost by accident.
  • Paul: “We had no ambition to run a club night...I was to say, yes person...You want to run your own club? Okay.” (23:09)
• Classic nights, booking legendary DJs by cold-calling from record labels, flying in Richie Hawtin—and the excitement when it suddenly “tipped” into a sellout success.
• The wild, nonstop schedule of magazine work by day and club promoting by night—“Couldn’t do that now!” (26:27)
• Emotional highlights, like Daft Punk spontaneously agreeing to play their birthday, paying only for travel:
  • Paul: “Daft Punk put on Stevie Wonder’s Happy Birthday and there’s a bit of an emotional moment...that is one memory that always...has stayed with me.” (30:00)

The Rise and Fall of Jockey Slut

Timestamps: 33:44-38:52

• How the magazine’s indie hustle paid off (20,000 sales, big advertisers, etc.), but burnout and cash flow realities pushed a move—selling to a London publisher.
• The benefits and challenges of going monthly and scaling up, only to see the company unexpectedly go into administration.
• Reflections on youthful optimism and creative resilience:
  • Paul: “I had this kind of ridiculous self-belief...I’ll just start another thing that’s as good as Jockey Slut.” (37:55)
  • He admits, on hindsight, “It was very difficult to do that...very few of those things have been as successful or as meaningful.” (38:30)

Reinvention and the Print Revival (Disco Pogo)

Timestamps: 39:01-54:15

• Paul describes pivoting after Jockey Slut—launching new mags (Dummy), record labels, and eventually running artist services.
• The catalyst for Disco Pogo came during lockdown: after creating a book in tribute to Andrew Weatherall (raising £60k for charity), the demand for print reignited.
  • Crowd-funded approach (raising approximately £60k), underlining a more “measured” and sustainable model after learning from the past.
• Deciding on the name Disco Pogo (a callback to an old Jockey Slut slogan), the importance of authenticity, and consciously making a magazine reflective of their current selves, not chasing youth trends.
• Paying contributors fairly from day one—even if he and his co-founder went unpaid.
• Content strategy: blending legendary electronic music figures with newer voices, focusing on in-depth, personal storytelling:
  • “Some of the features, I’m really proud that we published them. They’re genuinely...things that you don’t read anywhere else.” (48:05)
• Finding a healthy business model by combining the magazine with special books (on Weatherall, Daft Punk, Aphex Twin), direct sales, and strong relationships with indie magazine shops:
  • Paul: “What I’ve discovered is...investing in journalists, investing in photographers, creating a great product and selling it at a price where we can pay for the printing and make a profit, it’s kind of working.” (52:44)

The Changing Nature of Community and Creative Business

Timestamps: 54:15-60:32

• How indie magazine shops and a worldwide print-loving community keep the magic alive in a new form.
  • “It’s a different kind of magic. You just have to look for the magic elsewhere, don’t you?” (57:24)
• Social media is a double-edged sword—tedious at times, but also vital for connecting with readers, stockists, and the music community across the globe.
• Creative fulfillment comes not just from personal output, but from supporting and fostering community—writers, photographers, designers, readers.
  • “It does feel like a community. It’s...quite a joyful thing.” (60:20)

Reflections on Change, Resilience, and Advice for Creatives

Timestamps: 60:32-End

• The challenges facing creatives and journalists today: economic squeeze, rapid shifts.
• Paul’s advice and personal outlook:
  • “I’ve learned from mistakes that I’ve made in the past. The magazine has to be...people have to buy it. We’re not giving away content for free. We’re going to pay people properly...We’re going to get good journalists...So yes, we have applied that thinking. And so far, it’s going well.” (61:44)
  • "[After failure]...I did something we were passionate about and we put our heart and soul into it and we’re still learning." (63:27)

Final words:
Paul and Katy agree creative journeys are all about persistence, learning, and passion.
Paul: “When you work for yourself, when you run your own businesses, you’ve just got to keep going, haven’t you? That’s a good bit of advice, isn’t it? Keep going.” (64:17)

Notable Quotes

• “If you read a review in the NME...without hearing a note, you went to the shop and you bought the record. Which just sounds crazy...nowadays.” (Paul Benney, 04:06)
• “I was 22, obsessed with music...let’s start our own magazine.” (Paul Benney, 14:05)
• “You want to run your own club? Okay. I don’t know what that involves, but yes.” (Paul Benney, 23:09)
• “Daft Punk put on Stevie Wonder’s Happy Birthday and there’s a bit of an emotional moment...that is one memory that always...has stayed with me.” (Paul Benney, 30:00)
• “People have to buy it. We’re not giving away content for free. We’re going to pay people properly. We’re going to be ambitious...” (Paul Benney, 61:44)
• “Don’t give up. Keep going.” (Paul Benney & Katy Cowan, 64:19)

Key Takeaways

• True creative success is built on adaptability, learning from both triumphs and failures, and a passionate commitment to both the craft and the community.
• Print media is not dead—it’s evolving, finding new life as a premium, niche, and community-driven object.
• Investing in your people and your product—paying writers and photographers fairly, charging properly for quality—offers a sustainable path, even amidst industry upheaval.
• The magic of the 90s can’t be recreated, but new forms of magic—authentic community, physicality, storytelling—are everywhere if you look for them.
• Amidst digital noise and rapid change, slowing down, focusing on people and stories, and “doing it for the love” is not just possible, but perhaps necessary.

For anyone navigating the creative industries—especially those feeling lost amidst change—Paul Benney’s story is a testament to the enduring power of independent spirit, community, and believing there’s always a new chapter.