Joey Madia, New Mystics Reviews

(Cinco Puntos Press, 2008, www.cincopuntos.com) “It is what you read when you don't have to that determines what you will be when you can't help it.” —Oscar Wilde “Everybody wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die.”—Harvey Goldner, “Another Ancient Mariner” I never met Harvey Goldner, and now it’s too late. Harvey, who passed from this Plane in July of 2007, was a poet and personality loved by many—mostly in Seattle, where his death has left a void in the poetry scene, underground and otherwise. But elsewhere as well. I was first introduced to his work in late 2007, when I received a review copy of Letterhead, Volume 1, a collection of poems put out by Highest Hurdle Press. Within its pages was a tribute to Harvey in the form of a series of letter-poems exchanged between he and the Buffalo, NY–based poet Robert Pomerhn. In reading those letters, I was struck by Harvey’s brutal honesty as he tried (and succeeded) to help shape and mature the art of a hard-working and tale...

It’s no secret that this 28-year-old musician, poet, and novelist is a favorite at New Mystics. Patrick Porter’s musical and literary talents have grown steadily over the years, from the time 13 years ago when he was playing drums in his father’s band to his latest works (aside from this review, we have several of Patrick’s poems on the site this month, as well as a bio and my review of his first poetry book, Nervous Halo). For the past several years he’s given in to his wanderlust, splitting time between the environs of Denver, Colorado and those of New York City, the journeys always providing a wealth of new material about the people and places Porter sees. His three previous CDs—Lisha Kill, Skylan Mo, and Maybe Waltz, are what he calls the “NY Trilogy.” (You can read my comprehensive review of Lisha Kill at http://www.newmystics.com/New%20Mystics%20Music%20Lisha%20Kill.htm. It contains a lot of background/biographical information in addition to thoughts on all the tracks). My int...

Picking up Nervous Halo, a collection of poems published by Academic and Arts Press in 2001, I didn't know what to expect. The title, coupled with the mysterious cover illustration ("believed to be" by Gilles Brenta) led me to think perhaps the poems were a religious exploration, in the spirit of Arthur Rimbaud’s Illuminations. If there is a little bit of God in everyone and the Devil truly is in the details, then the cover art and title (which appears as a recurring line in one of the poems) are perfect. In 25 poems, titled as 26 "Streets" (more on that later), the poet takes the reader on a tour of a city as seem thru his and other eyes. One peopled with what at first might seem the pitiful and downtrodden of society, as might be the case when portrayed thru the pen of a less gifted writer. Porter, however, rises above writing about the lower-class city-dweller for no other reason than to say, "Here they are. Don't they make a provocative subject fo...

(Camera Obscura Records, 2005, CAM071CD, www.cameraobscura.com.au) Patrick Porter is a multifaceted artist in the purest sense, working odd jobs of various and mostly limited duration while he creates his novels, poems, music, and paintings (which often serve as the cover art for his records). Patrick’s work as a poet has garnered a great deal of attention (I reviewed his Nervous Halo a few years ago) and his music is selling very well these days (his Reverb Saved my Life, also available thru Camera Obscura, is a gem). He also has a CD out thru Asaurus Records (www.asaurus.org) called Skylan Mo. He recently traveled Europe in support of his music, producing a blog of his encounters and experiences on his website, www.nervoushalo.com, that was the kind of stripped down beautiful-language literature reminiscent of ole Jack Kerouac. Patrick’s latest effort, Lisha Kill, recorded in Schenectady, New York in the summer of 2003, is at first hard to wrap your ears around, to get comfortable wi...