The Metropolitan Magazine was started in the summer of 2004 by dubious means. Steve Webb was the owner of a then-fledging poster company and was looking for a different way to get his gigposters seen. While messing around with a photocopier in the back of Lucky Bar, he figured out a way to trick the machine into making a booklet. The first issue was 100 copies of this gigposter 'zine' and was widely regarded as toilet paper - most ended up in the recycle bin at The Joint Pizzeria. The idea was tabled for a few months while Steve explored the viability of turning out a zine regularly. The second volume was done with the help of Matt Dupius later that year when Steve's poster company, Metropol, aquired a Risograph printer. The first 2-color issue was similar to it's predecessor in that it contained gigposter art only. Over the next seven issues, with the help of Matt and Mark Bradbury, Steve began working in content based around the events he was postering and interviews with some regular wierdos about town. In late 2005, the magazine was tabled again because, well, nobody cared.


Metropol purcahsed a digital press with a booklet finisher in 2006. Steve decided to take another run an the project and brow-beat his staff into contributing to the magazine while he oversaw the editing duties. The first issue of Volume 3 had a cover story on local artist (and then-Metropol employee) Joey MacDonald, a story on the band The Lagoons and a centre spread of gigposter artwork, in glorious full colour. The zine was eight pages and the same size as a comic book.

Volume 3 and 4, issues were published biweekly on a brutal production schedule. These times are widely regarded as The Metropolitan's 'Renaissance Period', and featured some disturbing highlights such as 'Drunken Interviews', 'BTS Employees of the Month' and the now-legendary 'Nipples and Dicks' episode. Somewhere between Volumes 4 and 5, Brandon Velestuk took over duties as Art Director, a job he would hold until Jan 2008 when Carlin Bennet stepped up for Volume 6. Chris Long came on board as Music Editor in Volume 5 and Chris Bradford handled the marketing for Volume 5. Kevin Nelson held down the Editor position for a time in 2007 until Jenn Chrumka took over for the next ten issues until handing the torch to Adrien Sala in 2008. Throughout this time, the magazine would move to a monthly, and slowly increase page count and print quanitites, from 500 copies bi-weekly to 3000 monthly. Eventually, when the job of printing all the magazines in the Metropol office becaume a three day affair, the printing was outsourced to Hillside Printing.

In 2008, The Metropolitan separated from the poster company that gave it life. It now operates as a 100% independently owned and operated publication with a growing readership and dedicated staff.

The Metropolitan Magazine has had many, many contributers and staff over the last few years, all of whom were instrumental in making this magazine what it is today.