I carried around with me An Oak Hunch for days to remember to get Phil Hall to sign it at the above/ground reading and then didn’t end up making my way over to speak with him at all…I really have to learn to move faster. But then one can’t die of que ser-y, usually, so far as I know.
Hall read from his new chapbook (Verulam, above/ground 2009) where he gives tribute to where he’s from and where his family is from “Local is my most shameful pride — local is what threatened me with silence.” And then proceeds on to talk of where is close to heart, compellingly.
He also read from his recent BookThug a bad sequence too, which came across in part like good literary stand up comedy. Titters and surprise cough laughs around the room as he nailed some things.
You can hear him at Atwater with some of the same as he read Aug 13 in Ottawa such as these recollections of his childhood and parts from bad sequence. In part it goes… “I read too much poetry. I ehar the same images over and over again. You probably do too. Most of you are probably poets too. It’s okay that we clap for each other. Only pets get enough attention.”
Host rob mclennan introduces Roland Prevost and his new chapbook Our/ Are Carried Invisibles and advises you get it. You have got it, and Hall’s, haven’t you?
Roland Prevost read from his Our/ Are Carried Invisibles and his second newest, Dragon Verses from Dusty Owl Press in June.
Here’s a sample of his newest, a pressing intensity of cadence on our vulnerable mortal selves…
handsome coils
skin prays under cottons, rayon’s, silks
pleads with no particular negotiates
what music ceremonies its surrender
perfect what makes practice this
repetitious affront bears artificial
under hot limelight; stage of penetrating fear
wondrous how it will burn
so desiring of any aid & coil
mock-holy supplication
Roland was recently featured in a 12 or 20 interview and is an editor of 17 seconds which should have another poetics issue due out in a couple months.
cool stuff Pearl… gotta love the avant garde…
i ‘spose i ‘spect all those possessives
to take me somewhere…
mark of good poetry
breaking the signs