We're All Gonna Die! (And Other Fun Facts)

This episode is about a poet I try (and fail) at emulating. John Dorsey is profoundly prolific and prolific at being profound. He publishes on average 8 to 10 books a year. This includes his greatest hits collection from the last 3 years Holocaust Agave, the forthcoming Farewell Tour from Tangerine Press in the UK, … Continue reading Ep 113: John Dorsey is Really Good at Writing John Dorsey Poems

Gem Fair does literally everything, from writing about music for Pitchfork, to making music as Space Buns Forever, drumming for Big Baby, Playing second bass for Larval State, and being the front man for Positive Thinking. Gem does it all, including some stuff we forgot, like being a ring announcer for Enjoy Wrestling. And like … Continue reading Ep 112 Renaissance Gem

Old friend Jason Baldinger is back with a new book and new conversation. Jason did a lot of reading from his new book American Aorta, and American Aorta comes with its own playlist! As always, Jason is super funny, engaging, and honest. Our conversation ranges from rust belt memories, travel, and the craft of poetry. … Continue reading Ep 111 American Aorta

Dr. Hazel is a botanist, punk bassist, artist, zine publisher, and as you will hear in this podcast, intellectual powerhouse. I learned a lot about the natural world and tried not to sound stupid. Check out her art on Instagram, and see more things Dr. Hazel created on Tumblr, Hear her talk more about post-industrial … Continue reading Ep 110 Dr. Hazel Contains Multitudes

For this episode I sit down with Pittsburgh Poet Charlie Brice to talk about his 7th and soon to be 8th books. In the process we talk about the power of humor and the persistence of memory in poetry. Charlie’s book Miracles that Keep Me Going is out now, and the best way to purchase … Continue reading Ep 109 Miracles that Keep Charlie Brice Going

If you can believe it, Jason Baldinger is back on the podcast! HOWEVER, Jason is with us to talk about his new adventures as a photographer. Right before he departed to set up his gallery show at the Osage Arts Community, Jason and I discuss the ways in which poetry and photography often come from … Continue reading Ep. 108 Rust Belt Resurrections

Damon Di Ciccio and Michael Sanchez first started working on the film The Return of Great Guy in 2005, they shot it in 2006, and several hard drive crashes, cross-country moves, and a poop ton of perseverance later, The Return of Great Guy is finally ready to be seen. Listen to me geek out about … Continue reading Ep 107: Great Guy is Finally Here

We’re back from another unplanned, unannounced hiatus, and who knows, this could be the beginning of another one. Old friends Jason Baldinger and James Benger discuss their new split poetry collection This Still Life. In our discussion, we talk about what it means to work on a collection like this, James and Jason read, and … Continue reading Ep. 106: This Still Life

Obviously, you’re probably thinking that everything can be said about all of the shining constellations in the musical universe that is Bob and the Dangerous Brothers has already been said. However, after months of tense negotiations with their legal team, we were given the opportunity to ask the members of the post-Bob and the Dangerous … Continue reading Ep 105: An Oral History of Bob & the Dangerous Brothers in 10 Questions

Tony Burfield’s new collection of haibun poetry is a vivid recollection of a Northern Appalachian childhood. Burfield’s haibun poems capture two aspects of memory: the stories we tell and the emotional responses we feel. During our conversation we do a deep dive into the world of poetic form, the role of wilderness in his poetry, … Continue reading Ep. 104 The Slingshot Vignettes

Dr. Roxana Cazan is a poet and professor who engages with the beauty and sadness of our human frailty. Her new collection of poems entitled Tethered to the Unexpected: Poetry about Illness explores death, birth, illness, motherhood, and what it means to be connected to people across continents. She reads some of her fabulous poems, … Continue reading Ep. 103: Tethered to the Unexpected

Our most frequent guest has released his KTel record of the greatest hits and unreleased poems. A History of Backroads Misplaced is a retrospective of the last decade of his work. During this episode we look back at Jason Baldinger‘s evolution as a poet, what it means to revise old work, and there are some … Continue reading Ep. 102: Jason Baldinger’s KTel Record

For our very special 101 episode, we we go back to the beginning with our guest for our first ever episode! Spiff Wiegand is a musician, actor, aspiring producer, and all around interesting human. He joins the podcast from a McDonald’s Parking Lot in Georgia. During the course of our sprawling conversation we discuss: Spiff’s … Continue reading Ep. 101: Spiff Wiegand is a Bookend

For our 100th episode we didn’t do a cheesy clip show. Instead, poet Valerie Bacharach stopped by for a deep discussion on memory, grief, and poetry as a tool for healing. Valerie reads from her new excellent book Ghost Mother, which you should buy Ghost Mother from Finishing Line Press or buy it from the … Continue reading Ep. 100: Ghost Mother

Jason Baldinger is one of the folks who has made this podcast what it is, and who better to have on for our last show in the double digits but him. However, this was perhaps the most difficult podcast I have ever recorded, because it is about his split poetry and art book co-authored by … Continue reading Ep. 99: The Afterlife is a Hangover

We intended to discuss Season 1 of Chris Q Murphy’s livestream where he performs his songs and discusses songwriting craft with guests. However, CQM is the person I have been close friends with the longest, and well . . . things got off track. Join us for our intimate conversation about music, young people, and … Continue reading Ep 98: Chris Q Murphy has a Livestream Now

Brook Pridemore and I set out to talk about noise and music, and immediately we got sidetracked into an intimate conversation about the death of monoculture, protective identities, and what it means to revisit places that mean a lot to our (often painful) personal memories. During the conversation we kinda forgot to talk about why … Continue reading Ep 97: Just Brook, Anyway Here’s Wonderwall

Nina Padolf is a poet who writes about family history, trauma, and memory. Her poems exist at the intersection of personal history and that which we often prefer not to discuss. Thankfully, during our podcast we were able to have a deep and meaningful conversation about poetics, identity, and Dr. Padolf reads for us. You … Continue reading Ep. 96 Uprooted

EW Harris is a musician who fuses sci-fi and folk, playing on upcycled instruments and cell phones. His new single “Bad Ghost” explores the ways in which our insecurities and regrets might just follow us into the afterlife. During the course of our conversation, we talk about how being born in the Rust Belt might … Continue reading Ep. 95: I was a Weak Man. Now I’m a Bad Ghost

Anthony Kapfer and Amber Irish host an excellent comedy/variety talk show on Twitch TV every Monday night at 10 Eastern called Digital Slumber Party. Anthony also has a new comedy album entitled, I Can’t Believe It’s Not Better. We discuss both and why being buried alive is the worst way to die. Also, we get … Continue reading Ep. 94: I Can’t Believe It’s Not a Digital Slumber Party