Independent music magazine Stool Pigeon is to close eight years after it was launched, its owners have announced.
Editor Phil Hebblethwaite confirmed yesterday that the December/January edition will be the last edition of free bi-monthly newspaper, which had an average circulation of 54,588 according to its most recent ABC figures.
Hebblethwaite told readers that the magazine was in a catch 22 situation: “I wanted to do much more online, but the newspaper sucked up nearly all our resources and time.
“It’s proved impossible to do both as well as we’d like and, to be frank, we’re knackered.
“We haven’t gone bust. We will settle outstanding invoices and, subscribers, you will be reimbursed via PayPal for issues that you have paid for upfront and will now not receive. Thank you for your support.”
Hebblethwaite hinted that he could come back with deputy Alex Denney to work on the website “but not unless we can find a way to fund things properly”.
The Stool Piegeon team hand-distributed the newspaper to 650 stockists at more than 100 cities and towns across the UK – a process Hebblethwaite said had become “untenable, and also increasingly less effective and exciting than publishing journalism online”.
“I’m proud of what we’ve achieved and it’s unquestionably been a fascinating period to cover music,” said Hebblethwaite.
“YouTube launched a month after we did in 2005. Everything has changed.”
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