Since 1996, Concussion has been providing skateboard and music enthusiasts an underground alternative to the corporate influenced mainstream publications. Concussion reflects a hardcore lifestyle that both its readers and publishers strive to be a part of. Shying away from the corporate youth market scene which includes such things as the X-Games and other corporate-sponsored contests, Concussion prefers to feature a more underground style of skateboarding that is often found in drained backyard pools, empty concrete spillways or behemoth skateparks in the middle of nowhere. We don't strive to be a clone of the Skateboard Mag or Transworld or other flip trick rail dog mags, and we have often been compared to Thrasher Magazine "back when it was still good." After all, what's the point of trying to be like everyone else?

Concussion's readers are a little older and wiser than your average 12 year old; they aren't easily swayed by big-budget ad campaigns and can see through thinly veiled disguises to commodify and repackage their culture and have it sold back to them. This ethos, reflected in Concussion's editorial content, brings a sense of legitimacy that is not often found in other skateboard magazines, and for that reason Concussion enjoys a very loyal following of readers who have a high demand for our publication and other products.

Concussion is published quarterly and has a circulation of 10,000 copies per issue. Concussion can be found in bookstores, newsstands and skateshops around the country. We are distributed nationally and can be found in many popular newsstands and bookstores. In addition Concussion is distributed internationally in limited quantities to Japan and Europe. For shop orders or smaller orders, or any advertising or promotional questions contact us.

We also offer film scanning and ad design for an additional fee. To ensure the hightest quality, we prefer to receive ads digitally in 300 dpi TIFF, EPS or PDF formats, but we can also accept Flightchecked InDesign, Quark, or Illustrator formats. While we will make every reasonable effort to ensure that our advertisers files look good and print properly, we cannot be responsible for any ads submitted without accompanying hard copy proofs.

Ad Size Specs

Full Page

For a two page spread, double the full page specs, the "inside" live area should be used as specs for the gutter.

Bleed > 8.5" x 11.125"
Trim > 8.375" x 10.875"
Live Area > 7.875" x 10.375"

Half Page

Half page horizontal specs are half of the live area of a full page, or 7.875" x 5.187"
Half page vertical is 3.94" x 10.375"

Quarter Page

Quarter page vertical is 3.94" x5.187"

Note that there is no bleed on half or quarter page ads.

FTP Info:

In lieu of shipping us a disk with your files on them, we can accept FTP uploads of files to our server. If you know how to do this, it can be quick, easy, and free, especially when you're blowing your deadline and we needed your ad two days ago.

ftp: concussion.org
log: advertiser@concussion.org
pass: concussion

Have more questions or are interested? Send us an email or call (510) 334-1328 between the hours of 9AM and 5PM Pacific Standard Time and somebody might call you back. Email is the best way to get a timely response.

Record and Video Reviews

If your sensitive little ego can handle it, send us your CD's, records, videos, and books to review. We have a large music review section and our crack (smoking) team of critics seperate the good from the garbage and generally let you know what's up. We also like to go to shows (in the SF Bay Area) for free, so get us on your guest lists (+1) if you ever want your bands to be featured in our live reviews section. Photo pass required please.