The Orange Spotlight

Grub Street Grackle "Poets on Poetry" Fall 2008 Issue (Vol. III, No. 2)

When I received a package of journals from the Texas based Grub Street Grackle I suddenly realized that I had been neglecting a segment of literature. Looking back through my archive I seem to have focused on poetry that relates to my experience. The hard working, blue collar, back alley poet that explores the realities of like and can reveal universal truths in a language that is clean and honest. Does a journal need to accomplish anything more than that?

Don't get me wrong, I do feel that Grub Street Grackle could relate to the everyday poetry fan, but do I believe that the work of some of my favorite poets (Karl Koweski, Justin Hyde, Christopher Cunningham, and so on) would appear on these pages... I don't know. The journal calls itself the "Elitist Magazine for the Masses", and in concept that type of journal has it's place when done right. Editor and Poet Amos Johannes Hunt in a letter had this say, "It appears to be nothing more than a private publication of the humblest variety, constructed of seven or eight sheets of paper folded and saddle-stapled, its content cobbled together by acadre of unknown authors and artists, with no claim on anyone's attention". It's with that thought I explode the three editions that I was sent, and the deeper I search the more I began to understand their mission and appreciate their language. I became intrigued by the new names I was presented with and I began to want to find out more about them. My favorite issue was their Fall 2008 edition in which they had each poet involved write an essay about another poets poem. It not only gave more insight the poetry, but allowed you to look a little deeper at each poet. So despite their claims Grub Street Grackle is a journal that everyone can relate to once they take the time to read it. Read it, as Amos says "not with the tepid eye of a reviewer adjudicating, but even with an expectant zeal, to search its recesses and find its truth".

Bombs Into You - Metaphorically Yours [Volume 1] (Self-Released, Feb. 8th)

Does packaging matter? It's a question I've asked many times and have received a range of answers. In the era of digital downloads we seem to be rapidly losing interest in the craft of cover design. There was a time when DIY covers, handmade printed, cut and paste album art was treasured. True, there is a thriving underground movement to return to this practice, but why isn't this a more widely desired art form?

I understand the economic principle behind a label sending me a digital promo instead of a physical album. However, files on the computer can easily be forgotten. This past week I went to the PO Box and pulled out a few manila envelopes with plain white labels on them, but mixed in was an envelope that was painted black with splashes of blue and white. It definitely caught my eye, and it was the first package I opened. The mail art was courtesy of Portland's Bombs Into You, and the cd inside was also hand painted. Metaphorically Yours [Volume 1] is a five track collection of fine tuned electro-pop. It was as if The Killers actually cared again, and weren't so full of themselves. This trio did release the album for free digitally on their website, but the value and the passion contained with in this artistic package is worth the purchase. They are not yet available for sale on their site, but they hope to have them in their store. The band also has plans to release Vol. 2 this summer.

Slink (mp3)/Hold The Line/My Machine/All The Wrong Pills/Nearly