To W.S. from London
We recommend wider reading, less writing, and more local observation, and raising only questions that have answers.
Can you reflect on a work of poetry and simultaneously see the writer change? Can their self-alteration lead to the seeds of change blossoming in you? Wisława Szymborska asks these questions of you when reading her works. The Polish Nobel Prize winner threads the needle between philosophical conclusions and daily life. More insulated than most Slavic poets (often regarded as heroes for their concise ability to communicate a nation’s growing list of concerns), Szymborska is taking an external process (observation) and internalizing it so that your mind and her mind are neighbors in the same building. “Possibilities” outlines them all (“I prefer, where love’s concerned, nonspecific anniversaries that can be celebrated every day”). “Hatred” is a personification of that word pointing out its ability to “track us down” regardless of age, religion, and location. Even her word placement touches on both duality and irony (“The End and the Beginning” states “After every war/Someone’s got to tidy up”).
However what happens when Szymborska reads the works of others is also poetic in tone, if not form. In “How to Start Writing (and When to Stop) Advice For Authors,” Szymborska is “smuggling” her poetry into a new form. A collage of parts of her advice columns for “Literary Life,” “How to Start” reduces the labor of correspondence down to what separates it and unites us. “To Waldemar, from Krakow” allows her to instruct a 40-year-old to write as they are now and use the one thing that the vivacious young writers everyone admires do not possess: experience. “To Z. N-ski, from Wadowice,” Szymborska retells her story like a fable and then urges her to write without boundaries. Finally, in “To Zb.K., from Poznan,” Szymborska honors the work of the writer but cautions them that these short poems cannot be so heavy that no one will pick them up more than once.
Now you must also be aware that Symborska was not always the graceful matron to these aspiring writers. Like the terse moments of her poetry, her barbs could have a necessary but long-lasting sting. In “To Harry, from Szczecin” she boldly and honestly warns “We instantly caught your drift and the enclosed feuilletons with all the humility our errors warrant.” Or she could enclose her biggest critique in a not-as-painful jibe. When responding to “Mr. G. Kr of Warsaw,” Symborska flatly states that “You need a new pen. The one you’ve got keeps making mistakes.” All of this lovingly from a poet who once cited her own favorite writing tool as the trashcan. Perhaps, even slipping in one funny addition (to either herself or the Bard) that appears as our epigram.
Somehow in absorbing the writing of others, the shy Symborska has gained entrance into the conversation and not as a lofty poet on high. Instead, her comprehension and advice carry the comforting implication that if you keep working at it, “you too will be a great writer.”
Prose can hold anything including poetry,
but in poetry there’s only room for poetry —
In keeping with the poster that announces it
with a fin de siecle flourish of its giant P
framed in a winged lyre’s strings
I shouldn’t simply walk in, I should fly ...
“Stage Fright” (1986)
Mik Davis is the record store manager at T-Bones Records & Cafe in Hattiesburg.
MUSIC This Week
RSD23: CELEBRATE YOUR
INDIE RECORD STORE!
Once again, friends, RECORD STORE DAY is upon us. For 2023, it is all back to one thrilling drop. 300 exclusive releases that span the entire spectrum of available music. So many albums. So much material. To be honest, it dominates the entire day at TBONES - therefore, it is the duration of this column. Come early as these are all in limited numbers. Shop deep into the list as many of these records are just the seed to grow yours in a whole new direction. Be adventurous and dive in! The doors will open at 10 AM Saturday, April 22nd!
TAYLOR SWIFT - folklore: the long pond sessions
[GRAY 2LP](Republic)
Over the course of the shutdown, Taylor Swift went back to basics. "folklore" emerged from a canceled tour and Swift quarantined herself with classic books and movies. These never-before-released sessions marked the only truly "live" recording of cuts from "folklore" with her supporting players including Aaron Dessner, Jack Antonoff, and Justin Vernon (a.k.a. Bon Iver). Only 75,000 are to be released in the US.
THE 1975 - Live With The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
[CLEAR 2LP/CD/CS](Dirty Hit/Polydor)
The UK ambassadors for RSD, The 1975 made a dramatic change in their sound on their second album "I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It." To help with the epic/genre-breaking romantic sweep of these tracks, they recorded many of them with the London Philharmonic. In addition to these cuts, there is also a little-known mix of "Chocolate" from 2013 that has been added to this exclusive. Only 2500 nationwide.
STEPHEN SANCHEZ - Easy On My Eyes [RED LP](Republic)
EM BEIHOLD - Egg In The Backseat [YELLOW LP](Republic)
RSD is always a fantastic place to drop limited releases from the newest artists. However, this pair of hitmakers have never had a physical LP until now. Stephen Sanchez's slow-climbing Platinum single "Until I Found You" leads his debut release. While his sometimes duet partner Em Beihold wields a Platinum single of her own ("Numb Little Bug") on her true debut. Only 3000 of each are being pressed nationwide.
PEARL JAM - Give Way [2LP/CD](Legacy/Epic)
While there are a plethora of live Pearl Jam shows out there, this 1998 show from Melbourne, AUS on the "Yield" tour captured the band at their peak on that set of dates. Originally broadcast on Australian radio, an edited version of the show found its way to a special single CD "promo" version set to hit Best Buy stores that year. On the day of its release, it was recalled leading to some 300,000 CDs being destroyed.
dodie - Hot Mess EP [LP](Doddleoddle/Sony)
This UK artist takes a lot of influence from the intimate connection of Regina Spektor. On "Hot Mess," dodie is accompanied by strings and a large enough group to make the title track swell with intensity to reach its peak. "Got Weird" shows dodie's skill with slinky R&B-ish Pop. While the entire five-song EP is delivered with the confidence of Billie Eilish ("No Big Deal (I Love You)"), the real question is why this talent had a true hit yet?
THE SWORD - Gods of the Earth [PYRITE LP](Kemado)
For a few years, Austin's The Sword brought together the riff-wielding thrust of Classic Rock (early Heavy Metal) with the low-frequency punch of Stoner/Modern Metal. While not the lightning strike their 2006 debut "Age of Winters" was, "Gods of The Earth" shows depth even as it slashes and burns ("The Sundering," the near Celtic wanderings of "Lords," and the Sabbath-esque snarl of "Maiden, Mother & Crone"), 4600 in print in a beautiful mirror board sleeve.
THE MIDNIGHT - Red, White, and
Bruised: The Midnight Live [COLOR LP](Counter/Redeye)
With their synths and sax, The Midnight could easily be classified as a throwback to the Eighties. However, their songs often emerge from dark melodicism that is more cinematic ("Vampires"), and given their danceable sensibility (the Daft Punk-ish "Deep Blue"), and the sold-out tours these are drawn from are indicative of bigger things coming. Only 1300 will be made available this time out.
Various Artists - JAZZ DISPENSARY: HOTEL JOLIE DAME [ORANGE LP](Craft)
The Jazz Dispensary compilations are becoming the most habit-forming edition in many of the most recent RSDs. Their potent combination of lost Jazz from the 70s and the more Funk-based outlier Soul and Blues makes them a real pallet cleanser in any collection. For the first time, they programmed this year's installment as a concept that creates a mood and then pushes it forward slowly and methodically from start to finish. If you really need that getaway, may we suggest a stay at the "Hotel Jolie Dame."
Various Artists - HOLY CHURCH OF THE ECSTATIC SOUL [RED LP](Soul Jazz/Redeye)
Gospel Music has led a long and circuitous life. From the small groups (Swan Silvertones represented here by the straight burner "If You Believe Your God Is Dead") to the singers that were so powerful they moved congregations before secular crowds when Gospel got Soul in the Seventies, it briefly flirted with popular music. This collection celebrates the power of this music to move anyone. The dancefloor hit "You Brought The Sunshine" by The Clark Sisters is merely the best known on a double LP set of music that is mostly not available today. In our opinion, "Holy Church" is one of RSD23's best selections. Only 1000 were made for this RSD.
JASON ISBELL & AMANDA
SHIRES - Sound Emporium EP [LP](Southeastern/Thirty Tigers/The Orchard)
After being named the RSD ambassadors for all of our stores in the US this Spring, the dynamic husband-wife duo Jason Isbell and Amanda Shires cooked up this special four-song EP with two originals from Shires and Isbell, a reimagining of 400 Unit's "Tour of Duty" and a cover their favorite Richard Thompson track.
YES - Live at Knoxville Civic Auditorium, Nov 15, 1973 [3LP](Atlantic)
Part of the massive “Progeny” box of 21LPs (and the highlights collection as well), Yes commemorates the movement of their back catalog to Atlantic with a complete show from the “Close To The Edge” tour. This is the best lineup ever (despite the loss of Bill Bruford to King Crimson). Anderson, Squire, Wakeman and especially Howe are at peak capacity (“Mood For A Day/The Clap”).
THE CURE - Show [PIC 2LP](Fiction/Elektra/Rhino)
Live Cure albums are generally a real mystery. So in 1993, The Cure released a pair of live albums. The more “hit-worthy” “Show” was released in September 1993, with the gloomier “Paris” following in October. The biggest plus of “Show” is how brightly it is mixed. “Just Like Heaven” crackles from Smith’s acoustic guitar and the sparkling synths and pianos - but it still sounds bottom-heavy. While it does successfully mine their hits, the best cuts from “Wish” benefit from their freshness live. The deep cut “Trust” sounds lonely and wavering in its sadness in the cavernous Palace at Auburn Hills. “Doing The Unstuck” is a little more desperate live, and “From The Edge of the Deep Blue Sea” sounds massive as Smith’s wail (and its echo) builds steam all the way through leaving us ready for the impending reissue of “Paris.”
