Category Archives: Poetry

π‘‡β„Žπ‘’ π·π‘–π‘“π‘“π‘’π‘Ÿπ‘’π‘›π‘‘π‘™π‘¦-π‘…π‘’π‘Žπ‘™π‘š’𝑑 πΌπ‘Žπ‘› πΆπ‘’π‘Ÿπ‘‘π‘–π‘ .

Go ahead. Choose a realm, any realm. Ian’s not from there; he’s never taken up residence there, and, for that matter, spends precious little—if any—time there. Yes. It’s been proven.

It’s a damn shame that so little halfway decent video footage seems to be available, of Joy Division. The first two are the cream o’, that I have encountered. Prose ought not storm about in the Video {or Image} playground. I panicked. I’m stalling. Wingeing. And on, now, we go. Unto the Breach. We few. We happy few.

This is their greatest achievement. {Yes. In my opinion.} Lyrics such as “On stranger waves, the lows and highs, Our vision touched the sky” {I hear “skies”, but every “authority” says otherwise. It’s skies.} are lyrics that will stop one cold, transported. He’s Rimbaud, but lots better, genius-y-er. Getting It-y-er. And: past tense. Like he’s not there. Maybe never was. Haunting. As. ___________.

Means To An End’s Twin, spire-wise.

Isolation transcends the Isolation genre, or would, if such a genre existed. “I’m doing the best that I can” not to expound. I give you Ian: ” A blindness that touches perfection,
But hurts just like anything else…” I mean…

Also Quite “Good”.

Ian was not only brilliant, fiercely determined, and a de-framer-of-reference…to whom could he be compared?…but he was one brave man. To go out, in public, put self on display, and take unreal chances, and I mean here with his dancing…this must have been terrifying. For one afflicted with epilepsy, to *intentionally* lose control, physically…unreal. But, he *had* to.

π‘Ίπ’‘π’“π’Šπ’π’ˆπ’”π’•π’†π’†π’.

The songΒ BadlandsΒ is belted out with supreme force (Get It Straight!!) and something else I won’t attempt to name. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a crowd react in quite this way. 2002, in Barcelona.Β Badlands, defiant and uplifting,Β is one of Bruce’s best, to meβ€”the first cut off Darknessβ€”but this is simply transcendent. One sees here, for reals, why many witnesses to Springsteen’s legendary shows view him as an almost religious figure.

From 2009. The mighty and just a bit intense Bruce Springsteen unleashes the goods, ALL of β€˜em, on the moving Something in the Night. This song, from the great 1978 album Darkness on the Edge of Town, is, probably, if gun were put to head , to me, the greatest song the great man wrote. There are many. But this, this just totally embodies Springsteen.

π‘‡β„Žπ‘’π‘ π‘’ πΉπ‘Ÿπ‘Žπ‘”π‘šπ‘’π‘›π‘‘π‘  𝐼 π»π‘Žπ‘£π‘’ π‘†β„Žπ‘œπ‘Ÿπ‘’𝑑…

These Fragments I Have Shored Against My Ruins…

Adieu…

Hieronymo’s Mad Againe…

Paul Bettany displays simply towering talent in his portrayal here of serial killer Ted Kaczynski. Such examples of the following phenomenon are not without precedent, but they are rare fowl indeed. The Phenomenon: Bettany manages to be more Unabomber-esque than the Unabomber himself. Sure, it’s not possible; but this seems to pose little hindrance. Like G. Oldman as Stansfield, Olivier as Christian Szell, and Brando as Lee Clayton, Bettany simply has that much power to spare. It is rare indeed that a performance can truly be categorized as iconic…but the word applies fully in this situation. Incredible mastery. I find it haunting, in any number of ways, to this day. Indelible.

*And* herein lies the most….well, the most any-number-of-Things…iteration of “Huh.” Ever.

π‘‡β„Žπ‘’ π‘€π‘œπ‘›π‘‘π‘¦ π‘ƒπ‘¦π‘‘β„Žπ‘œπ‘›. π‘ƒπ‘Žπ‘Ÿπ‘‘ π‘‘β„Žπ‘’ πΉπ‘–π‘Ÿπ‘ π‘‘.

Most {well, all…} of these videos were wiped from the face o’ the earth, or at least from YouTube, semi-recently. It has been one of my ambitions to reinstate them, preferably in even better quality. These absurdist geniuses must be made available!! {7/21/2019}

And so…as Kevin Phillips-Bong stoically accepts the somewhat-less-than-one-might-want voting numbers, this concludes this, the first installment of re-Montying the planet. These pioneering wonders must—and shall be—well, you know what I mean.