Poem – Earthquake (By David Russell)

Earthquake What happened? There was a fault. What’s a fault? It’s when one piece of the earth juts above another. Why does that happen? Because the explosion down below Goes on forever.   But was that fault anybody’s? It was the earth’s; it’s beyond us. The seething energy-city, ever greedy to accelerate. Did its makers long to sharpen that fault, […]

Read more

Poem – Nocturne (By David Russell)

Nocturne   Small specks at night Made light of all our thoughts Which grew, in wonder, And burned the flesh that knew them And found the first thoughts, the controlled desires, the boxed fires the thrusting shields.   And spoke behind the pauses, And thought between the brain-tissues, And swarmed through infinite cells, And crowded out the millions And burned […]

Read more

Poem – Underwater Ballet (By David Russell)

Underwater Ballet In the wistful – drowning; All dreamers hold their breath; Floating balloon Rests full in blister world before the land.   Slippery between skin and scales, Drawn throbbing from the gilled; Great tuna from crustaceans postulated, Anemones new-boned; Parallel concert writhe Curls double joints.   Flippers of androgyny Erected supple   Thighs hoisted angular Lungs ultra-blown;   Last […]

Read more

Poem – Don’t Touch! (By David Russell)

Don’t Touch!   “Don’t touch!” they cried; They really meant no harm, Had not intended To make a shaking, Jibbering apoplectic With their nagging.   “Don’t touch!”, for their interior décor Indeed was fragile and expensive – Themselves and furniture alike To them untouchable, those self-pariahs. There are no easy stages; Somebody’s lost a memory, Somebody’s taking shocks; The papers […]

Read more

Poem – Carnival (By David Russell)

Carnival That peacock opulence, Swarming on strutting grime; That massed ecstasy, squeezing itself, Short-breathed, near suffocation; That sound-abandonment, seeming to plunge To deafness’s peace; Yet keeping those maimed faculties alive, Ever denying their last fulfilment.   Maybe it’s only I and it, I, starting in the middle And it, commensurate with my idea Of my own size?   Maybe I […]

Read more

Poem – The Musician’s Testament (By David Russell)

The Musician’s Testament “Being a living legend is such a precarious livelihood. What a ducking of responsibility!” (John Cale) “Success means being worried about everything else except money” (Johnny Cash) I’m putting down this last eyewitness account leading up to zero hour because all the registers have gone into the red; everything’s going to blow. If I am stopped in […]

Read more
1 2 3 5