There wasn’t enough “and the trillions” in the first volume (originally released in 2012) so I wrote a sequel, naturally entitled And the Trillions, Part 2. This book length accumulative poem examines multiples as a metaphor for the complex social and natural world humans inhabit. At 280 pages, Part 2 is over 4.5 times longer than Part 1, and all new material.
And the Trillions, Part 2 is now available on Lulu, here.
Flashback: That time the Stylus turntable ensemble played the AFI Silver Theatre, in Silver Spring, MD, as part of the Sonic Circuits Festival in 2011. Ensemble director/composer Jim Adams prepared elaborate scores specifying when each performer was to drop a needle on their prepared vinyl LP, which we all promptly ignored or klutzed up. In this iteration, Stylus included 9 turntable players (Jim Adams, myself, Matt Boettke, Layne Garrett, Chester Hawkins, Andrew McCarry, Anthony Pirog, Gary Rouser, and Keith Sinzinger) and 2 cellists (Janel Leppin and Doug Poplin). Stylus always represented a “who’s who” of the DC experimental music scene at the time, as everyone had one or more other projects going at the same time.
The composition for this performance was called “Lot in Sodom.” It was performed as a live soundtrack to playback of the 1933 silent film of the same name. We also did a soundtrack for the old Dada film “Emak Bakia” that evening.
Flashback: PDF poster for the Baltimore Electronic Music Summerfest in 2010, held at the Hexagon Space. I played in a trio called For Official Use Only with Dave Vosh and concert organizer Logan Mitchell, Sr. This project played all analog electronics and only did a couple shows in DC and Baltimore, as each of us had several other music projects going at the same time.
My poem “Tortilla Mockingbird” appeared in Mad Swirl‘s online Poetry Form on May 27. You can read the full poem here.
Satan joins Alzo Boszormenyi and the Acid Achivers live on stage!
One song excerpt from a “legendary” Alzo gig at Galaxy Hut (Arlington, VA) on November 16, 1997. The one where Satan plays guitar with a copper pipe. Costumes, props, improvised rock jam, a horn section…a sample of the chaos of a typical Alzo show. Galaxy Hut was kind of our HQ, as it was the only place that would let us play regularly. We played all over the DC area, even the Black Cat, but only once at each venue. For the record, I’m the bass player in the far right corner, wearing a kachina mask hood. Well, it was supposed to be a kachina mask. Love how Alzo strolls through the door in Kerouac drag.
Watching this recently I noticed the paintings on the wall above the window. The one most clearly in evidence is part of my own collection of thrift store art, a piece I call “Two Indians Sneezing on Each Other.” So this video represents two flashbacks in one, as it also documents the Thrift Store Art show I curated at the bar, mostly featuring paintings from my collection. It took a long time for the “signature scent” of the Galaxy Hut (cigarette smoke and French fry grease) to dissipate from the art.
While reviewing my YouTube channel yesterday, I discovered that one of my earliest videos had been removed for “violating YouTube’s Terms of Service.” I never received prior notification of this removal, so I’m not sure when this actually happened. Checking out the video, I noticed it does include swastikas among the imagery, before they are mirrored and distorted into abstract, “asemic” shapes. I assume the appearance of swastikas alone was enough to justify the removal, because there’s nothing about the video that engages or discusses Nazis or fascism. Or “flat earth theory” for that matter.
The source for “Earth Remains Flat” is newsreel footage from WWII which represents Nazi war efforts, taken from a video series about the history of the war. Neither the original newsreel nor the video program were promoting fascism or Nazism. Likewise, my video was not promoting or glorifying any ideology or theory–neither Nazism or “flat earth theory.” Instead, “Earth Remains Flat” deconstructs–or detournes–the original newsreel footage using various video effects (including glitching and mirroring) to demonstrate the warping of truth and fact that accompanies the downfall of nations and cultures. Overlaying the imagery is an excerpt from a longer poem, also titled “Earth Remains Flat”: “earth remains flat/at the edge–as if/land ends/here.”
Here’s the complete poem:
“Earth Remains Flat” is part of a series of poems called “Civilization’s Lost,” which explores the fragility of nations, cultures and languages by examining lost cities and civilizations around the world. The poems in the series were published in a variety of literary journals, including Empty Mirror, BlazeVox, Futures Trading, Word 4/Word, Streetcake and Yggdrasil. Both the poem and the video for “Earth Remains Flat” were published in Otoliths #45, from 2017, along with several still images taken from the film. Neither the editor or anyone else has ever alerted me to an issue with the appearance of swastikas in the video.
YouTube cites their “Hate speech policy” as the reason for the removal of the “Earth Remains Flat” video: “Content that incites hatred against individuals or groups based on their protected group status isn’t allowed on YouTube. This may include inferiority claims and/or conspiracy theories. We review educational, documentary, artistic, and scientific content on a case-by-case basis. Limited exceptions are made for content with sufficient and appropriate context.” The video includes no “inferiority claims” or racism, and no “conspiracy theories” and has no content to “incite hatred” against anyone.
I initiated a “review” with YouTube, so we’ll see what comes from that. I suspect that there may not have been a complaint about the video, but that some AI may have detected the swastika and flagged the whole video.
The latest Chiron Review for Winter 2024m Issue #135 arrived recently. I’m very pleased to be represented with one poem “Are You There Cosmos?”
Chiron Review is a great read especially for those into “outlaw poetry.”
For once I kept a New Year’s resolution–one made several years ago(!)–to create a Bandcamp page for my music project Totem Codes. Two albums and an EP of analog electronic instrumentals in a kind of synth pop/cold wave vein are currently available for perusal.
Recently received a nice email from Mad Swirl literary magazine announcing that my poem “Free Trip” will be included in their annual Best of Mad Swirl anthology for 2024. This anthology will present the best of 2024’s works posted on MadSwirl.com: art (4 artists, the best of each quarter), short stories (12 stories, the best of each month), and poetry (52 poems, the best of each week). The anthology is issued in print and digital versions; these have yet to be released, so stay tuned!
Ranger literary magazine released two issues this winter (!). I had poetry in issue #8. In issue #9, one of my glitch videos is included “That’s Edutainment.” Possibly could be filed under “video poetry”? You can check it out here. The video features music from Hearasay in Paradox Lust, a project which has a brand new Bandcamp page here.
Ranger literary magazine picks up where Angry Old Man (aka, Son of Angry Old Man) left off. It picks up the avant garde literary baton recently passed on by the now defunct Otoliths. Highly recommended.
jeff bagato 