1. He was worried about some sort of drug raid upon his home (propelled from Jim Hogshire's experience)
2. The “old” ER was just barely breaking even financially
3. DeKorne was dismayed/fed up/worried about the competition of such entheogen-based newsletters that exist online

As of last year, it was not known who exactly was taking over the newsletter -- well, it was known, but not to the general public. Now, the first issue of the NEW Entheogen Review is out (volume VII, number 1 -- Vernal Equinox 1998), with the editors being named as David Aardvark and cacti-specialist K. Trout. I'll be damned if those don't sound like pseudonyms -- both animal last names? The new subheading of the newsletter is definitely appropriate. This new incarnation is much more scholarly than before, and indeed deserves to be called a “journal.”

While the original ER was more of a quarterly question and answer session with DeKorne, this new version includes full-length writings and reports as well as questions submitted by the readers. Dr. Alexander Shulgin, Terence McKenna, Richard Glen Boire Esq., and Jon Hanna are several such entheogenic luminaries who helped answer questions for this issue, or contributed to its completion in some other way.

The aesthetic appeal of this new variety is much greater than the last. For one, the pages are white, yes white! As many of you are aware, the old ER was a different color each issue. Now, while this color coding can be used to help keep your issues organized, it isn't as professionally proper. The cover for Vol. VII No. 1 has a stunning black and white photo of a flowering Lophophora williamsii cactus, and is presented on a thicker stock paper. This new issue also comes across with 8 more pages than past editions (also $1 more per issue).

A table of contents on the inside cover makes traversing through its pages much easier than in the past, and an extensive bibliography on the last page makes for simple future research of subjects covered inside.

Following suit with the lovely b&w cover photo, there are incredibly clear photos of a large Salvia divinorum leaf, and five photos of various Trichocereus peruvianus cacti.

The actual articles inside are extensive enough. There is a summary from Jon Hanna correcting earlier ER reports of the famed “Borametz Extract”; there is a transcription of Terence McKenna's video broadcast from the Mind States Conference this past November; a short but concise article by Richard Glen Boire Esq. about the possibility that Chemical Resale of Santa Barbara was/is a DEA cover operation; an in depth discussion about Trichocereus peruvianus by K. Trout; and more...

The only parts carried over from the original ER are the book reviews and the question/answer bit interaction with the readers. For this new version, all of the stops have been pulled out! The editors of the new ER contacted Dr. Alexander Shulgin to help answer reader's questions on the blueing action of Psilocybes and to help clarify the discussion. For anyone interested in entheogens, this part is amazing! To actually have some connection with such a spectacular member of the entheogen world.

So in conclusion, really the only characteristic that this new Entheogen Review has in common with the DeKorne years is the title. On a scale of 1--10 if the DeKorne ER was a perfect '10' because of its groundbreaking approach, this new version is a '50+' for expanding on the original promise of the ER! Kudos must be handed down to Mr. Trout and Mr. Aardvark for creating a scholarly entheogen-based journal for the masses! Much of what is presented in the new ER cannot be found anywhere by the layman -- even on the dreaded internet.

Single issues: $6 ea.
Four-issue subscription: $25 (one year)
The Entheogen Review
564 Mission Street, Box 808
San Francisco, CA 94105-2918