Hi. Do you need an angry but positive fuck you anthem after too much extended family and unrelenting consumer capitalism beating on your fucking brain? Good. Relatedly, a couple months back I was in the outlet store and they had Basquiat socks, which I got, because I have a job where I wear fake nice clothes and act like I'm a decent and upstanding member of society instead of the mental degenerate who wants everything to crumble into a fresh progressive apocalypse that I am. So I bought these Basquiat socks for like $3, and it feels pretend resistant, but it's actually just somebody got a licensing agreement for dead Basquiat's art, and I bought some fucking socks, which apparently not enough people bought at the regular overinflated price, so I got them at the outlet store. Trickle down identity, lol, a lower class boy that's done come up in the world, WEARING A MOTHERFUCKIN' THREE DOLLAR PAIR OF SOCKS, LIKE A GODDAMN FAUNTLEROY.
RAVEN MACK is a mystic poet-philosopher-artist of the Greater Appalachian unorthodox tradition. He does have an amazing PATREON, but also *normal* ARTIST WEBSITE too.
Saturday, November 30
Friday, November 29
SONG OF THE DAY: Polite
I'm not one of those types to do an album of the year list, because I don't like tying my enjoyment of music into consumption of brand new items only, and also calendars are kinda bullshit. People who make these lists usually wrap them up by the first weekend of December, which eliminated almost a whole month. Fuck that shit. We're not all curators of culture to where we gotta do this shit all the time. That being said, if I limited myself to the calendar on the wall, and thought about some shit I ain't even listen to before 2019 but have played the living fuck out of this year so far (and counting), Bambu's at the top of the list, which isn't even a list to be honest, but just me thinking about it. There's so many faux woke people posturing online to gain woke credits for their little circle jerks of selfish self-righteous people, I can really appreciate the actual don't give a fuck attitude of Bambu, which also really does give a fuck, just not the way we're all trained into channeling our fuck giving. I'm sure "polite" and "politics" got the same root, but I don't feel like googling that shit, and I'm not an etymological encyclopedia, but it was funny to see people posturing about how they was mad at their racist uncles or drunk aunts on Thanksgiving. What the fuck? Go fix your goddamned own lives and families, and stop being out here judging every fuckin' body else for not following your lists of rights and wrongs. Anyways, it's Black Friday, and I ain't buying shit, but I do gotta mail a couple books out that got bought off my site, so I do have to go the post office for that shit, but I'm gonna bump Bambu loud as fuck as much as possible, because it sounds like people are moving into the apartment upstairs, and I've enjoyed the lack of neighbors overhead clomping around on the goddamn floors for a month or so, so I want them to know what the fuck's up. Or not. Fuck being polite all the time. Or politically righteous. Or political at all. I ain't wanna do shit but sit around and play dominoes to be honest, at least this weekend.
Label Labyrinth:
calendar boxes=prison cells,
economics,
flock politics,
Holla-daze,
Krupert's jukebox
Tuesday, November 26
SONG OF THE DAY: Jailbreak the Tesla
Jailbreaking an army of cybertrucks to drive into the wireless zones of West Virginia, to leave there to rust. Code name Teflon Rust, working with crow allies to combat starling drones manufactured since at least 1983. There is no technological solution to being human.
Monday, November 18
SONG OF THE DAY: Bang
inner muse ejaculated upon the world
oftentimes unnoticed, stains along
the bottom sides of capital life's secondhand cushions
easing the existential pain of mundane existence
common wage slave's resistance
"LIFE IS PAIN MOTHERFUCKER"
proclaimed buddha ray moore
and never have those words been truer -
that's it… never have they been truer…
this is what being human is about
navigating the ridiculously sprawling labyrinth
of manmade obstacles we've built over centuries
stale places of mildew and rot
and devising a way to make it feel fresh
cultivating bang culturing bang
to fend off the metaphysical vultures
by swinging our vorpal blade
around at the entangling world trying
to choke us out like kudzu made of burnt copper
wires snaking through yakubian spreadsheets…
by swinging our vorpal blade
clearing out a little space
to take a deep breath
and realize deep in your heart
fuck it
Sunday, November 17
Kyusho Basho 2019 Honour Tanka Day Eight: Ishiura (4-4)
so I made chanko nabe
stew in big steel pot
sautee onions and garlic
in oil, add chicken thigh meat
I make my own broth,
frozen, on hand, stored in old
yogurt containers
one at the ready to throw
in the big pot whenever
bought some giant red
beets the other day, so took
the tops, chopped them up
throw it in the pot, along
with some shiitake mushrooms
chop up spinach bunch,
add that; starting to smoke so
throw in broth ice cube
everything cooks while broth melts,
softening, blending, stewing
I have that "crab meat"
stuff, which when cooked unravels
kinda like noodles
threw in some mussel meat, plus
medium-sized shrimp, with tail on
that shit was on sale,
half-price - ingredients are
determined by cost
next time I make it, it'll
be completely different
and yet, entirely
the same essence - slow, simmering
stew of hearty shit
all this sat on medium-low
for a good hour, rightening
busted out saucepan,
six minutes to soft-boil eggs,
runny in middle
timer goes off, dunk in ice
cold water until all cool
I just let it all
sit there, simmering on stove,
did my Sunday chores
washed and hung clothes, vacuumed, watched
little Anthony Bourdain
finally, I was
ready for big fat bowl of
chanko nabe stew
in fact, I ate four… it'll
sit on the stove for few days
I've often joked that
Ishiura should eat his
chanko nabe stew
so small, always looking to
do the side dash thing for win
and yet this second
Sunday of this basho, side
stepping didn't work
Nishikigi clutched him tight,
gripped for inner position
Ishiura seemed
doomed, yet again, when his trick
failed upon start
somehow, once Nishikigi
pushed, Ishiura slipped past
with upper grip now,
Ishiura wrapped one leg
around opponent
he grabbed Nishikigi's left
leg, and thrust his head like goat
Nishikigi's vast
body fell like oak, carrying
Ishiura with
ultra-rare triple attack -
mitokorozeme move
me sitting here with
chanko nabe dribbling down
blackberry bush beard
no smack for Ishiura -
more man than I'll ever be
I finish it all
by writing silly poems
for obscure website
while Ishiura drives off
in his green Lamborghini
Kyusho Basho 2019 Honour Tanka Day Seven: CHIYOMARU (5-2)
of my down-low favorites -
sideburned heavyweight
born in Shibushi, as a
child he studied judo first
by high school, sumo
chose him, even though he had
not yet chosen it
he's got that extra-sumo
shape, yet extremely agile
his judo remains
with him - day seven he fought
Kotoshogiku
immediately has his
man pushed to the dohyo's edge
Kotoshogiku
regains footing, so "fuck it"
thinks Chiyomaru
he just shoots back other way,
slapping his opponent down
I often wonder
the sense of touch in these men,
feeling muscle shifts
naked flesh pressed together,
feeling the other man's thoughts
unconscious of mind
reaction times when one feels
energetic shift
using opponent's own force
against himself - pure judo
Kyusho Basho 2019 Honour Tanka Day Six: SHOHOZAN (4-2)
protege, Enho, always
fights above his weight
somehow he does well, despite
being many stones lesser
against Shohozan,
he again did far better than
his size would dictate
Shohozan maintained composure,
got him slipping on the sand
Enho had strange split -
sumo dudes practice that leg split
mobility shit
the level of specific
training involved in insane
thousands of practice
bouts, pushing giants backwards
until exhausted
serving up chankonabe
for stable elders, for years
this has been Enho's
destiny, living under
Hakuho's strong wing
Enho's fighting an uphill
battle, succeeding thus far
but he's many bowls
of chanko nabe lighter
than most of these dudes
on day six, mighty
Shohozan caught the young buck
slipping, sat him down
on a day where all leaders
except Hakuho took loss
Shohozan - wily
veteran maintaining place
middle of the pack
too good for juryo, but not
quite good sanyaku level
Friday, November 15
SONG OF THE DAY: Jump In
Discourse
Warning – none of us born here chose to be American, that shit chose us. Any
space is only as exceptional as how much effort and work the people occupying
that space put into making it exceptional or special, or whatever the fuck.
People don’t seem to be “putting in work” but they wanna still expect everybody
to give America the accolades of being some mighty shining beacon of whatever
the fuck we’re supposed to be a beacon of. One of the greatest strengths of
trash culture like poor people or gangs or survivalist hillbillies is that
these cultures all know that YOU AIN’T SHIT IF YOU DON’T KEEP PUTTING IN THE
WORK. It’s all sand castles and washes the fuck away pretty quickly unless you
keep putting in the work. Right now, America is fucked, but it’s mostly fucked
because nobody wants to do the work. And I don’t mean manual labor at
construction sites, I mean the hard work of fixing a bunch of shit that ain’t
working for the benefit of most people. You can’t keep selecting your favorite
self-important asshole because they got a blue or red check beside their name,
and think they gonna do it. None of those fuckers care, because they don’t
understand. But they think they know. People who don’t understand but think
they know are the most dangerous human beings around. And that’s about 99.9% of
our political class. So we’re fucked in that sense. So I’ll just keep putting
in work, try to make alliances for survival, try to carve out a shady corner to
be able to take deep breaths without somebody stepping on my head. I didn’t
choose this life I’m living, it chose me. None of us picked getting slowly
crushed by the corporate oligarchy’s avarice and greed that is the pyramid scam
of America in the 21st Century; but we’re here. Putting in work won’t set you
free – there’s no escape, unless you’re lucky. But putting in work means you
don’t crushed out of existence, hopefully, at least not today. Although it’s
crushing somebody else right now, and crushing way more than it’s lifting up.
Thursday, November 14
Kyusho Basho 2019 Honour Tanka Day Five: MEISEI (4-1)
hairy ass is personal
fave… always has been
stoic gaze and bulldog frame,
but the ozeki's struggled
always injured it
seems, and there's no break from this
sumo life (for life)
Meisei arrived on day five,
with spirited performance
they give an award
out for best fighting spirit
every basho
Meisei made an early play
for its consideration
Takayasu's five
thousand metaphysical
pounds came out thrusting
Meisei danced the physical
rikishi tango dervish
with lime green power aura,
Meisei's metaphysical
mystical force rose
a twist of torso, yank of
Takayasu - victory
Kyusho Basho 2019 Honour Tanka Day Four: TOCHINOSHIN (2-2)
had remained full strength, might've
made yokozuna
the Georgian mountain of a
man could overpower all
full-strength, he lifted
even the most gigantic
men, and carried them
now, with perpetual sore
knee, plus elbow, not the same
and yet, somehow he's
still able to pull off these
amazing displays
tussling Takarafuji,
no man gaining advantage
looked like another
Tochinoshin slow defeat,
after his strength failed
as it looks almost over,
a rare kubihineri
"head twisting throw" is
the Japanese translation,
first time in nine years
one arm around opponent's
neck, the other takes his hand
then Tochinoshin
twisted Takarafuji's
neck until he flipped
"where your head goes, your ass shall
follow" George Clinton once said
or something like that;
but even not at full strength,
Tochinoshin rules
can't help but wonder about
if he had remained healthy
might we have seen the
first ever European
yokozuna rank?
sumo is relentless; body's
health will job to mental state
Wednesday, November 13
Kyusho Basho 2019 Honour Tanka Day Three: WAKATAKAKAGE (3-0)
debut of another young
sumo rikishi
twenty-four years upon Earth;
grown life in grappling's clutches
his first basho has
begun with promise and strength -
but life can be cruel
how many young rikishi
start strong but burn out promptly?
the weight of broken
dreams attacks the heart harder
than red meat vices
his chankonabe bowl's full
right now though; enjoy it, prince
SONG OF THE DAY: No Class
I have meant to post more but I’ve been uninspired.
That’s mostly your fault, to be honest. The internet is a bougie ass cesspool
of neoliberal pretty vacancies, and that’s just the part I look at. The larger
internet is giant strides towards blissful fascism, and fuck both those
choices. I take pretty pictures and manipulate words with good practice, but I
still think classlessly. I am a dirtgod – thus born ugly and forced to take
pride in my wretched nature, because even if fully assimilated and exploited, I
can’t be one of y’all. (Unless you’re not one of them either; in that case, did
you watch that Dolemite shit on Netflix? That was great, wasn’t it?)
Tuesday, November 12
Kyusho Basho 2019 Honour Tanka Day Two: TSURUGISHO (2-0)
and Shohozan have epic
slap happy battle
Tsurugisho absorbs
concussion-like punishment
and yet somehow he's
able to grab Shohozan,
and flip his ass out
afterwards, for long moment,
Tsurugisho stands still
able to withstand
in the moment, but after
brain's like "what the fuck?"
life briefly turns black and white -
fighting through concussive fog
sumo protocol
is you continue until
you are unable
masculine traditions which
are toxic yet intriguing
wish my own toxic
masculinity involved
wearing dope silk robes
instead, I sit, self-conscious
in these lavender silk draws
life slapped me around;
and still I stand, stubbornly
existing, goat mind
noble Tsurugisho's
fight through slap fog inspires me
life is often like
running headfirst into walls
keeping you confined
metaphysical slaps from
all directions… frustrating
fuck it though - refuse
to quit; exist simply to
piss off your masters
goat minded people shall walk
beyond End Times (like always)
Monday, November 11
Kyusho Basho 2019 Honour Tanka Day One: ENDO (1-0)
simplistic tanka about
sumo, yet again
what makes poetry real? is
it academic respect?
what makes culture real?
man, ain't none of this shit real;
all just relative
sumo's existed longer
than either you or I have
why have I forgot
to do this ridiculous
shit past few basho?
I love sumo's spectacle,
and girthy dudes flexing skills
the era of four
yokozuna is long gone;
only two left
each day in this project, I
highlight one dude as special
each dude highlighted
only once per basho, like
a fucked up honour
hence title "honour tanka",
though I'm often times fusen
haven't completed
an entire basho's worth of
these in year and half
NONETHELESS, HERE I AM - 'BOUT
TO WRITE SUMO POETRY
day one, how many
times I've made the "Endo? smell
more like outdo'" joke
Endo's now komusubi -
climbing sumo's pyramid
his first opponent,
Goiedo, is eternal
ozeki it seems
Goiedo always does well,
yet never yokozuna
Endo fends off his
defeat, balances at edge
(like all true wild folk)
perseverance pays off
as Goeido's knee gives out
his ankle also
twists awkwardly; Goeido
appears somewhat fucked
nonetheless, in battle, to
be fucked means someone else wins
Endo, whose sumo
name reminds me of Friday
movie quotable
winner of day one's top match,
and thus now remembered here
internet content
or subversive poetry?
perhaps maybe both?
I don't know man, I just do
ridiculous shit, online
Thursday, November 7
S0M3 F0LKS B0RN W1TH 4LL Y0V C4N...
some folks born with "all you can
ride" tickets, while others ain't,
and we stand there just watching
Wednesday, November 6
4STR0N0M1C4L SCR1BBL3S...
Label Labyrinth:
gambleraku,
homepix,
railroad tie tapping,
staring at the sky,
the moon will rise again
Tuesday, November 5
S0M3 H0VS3H0LDS 4R3 CH3VR0L3T...
Label Labyrinth:
gambleraku,
homepix,
I be fixin broke shit,
one man's trash...,
things people drive
Monday, November 4
TH3 M1L1T4R1Z4T10N...
Label Labyrinth:
gambleraku,
govt papers in order,
guns and/or roses,
homepix,
the police
SONG OF THE DAY: Nothing Compares 2 U
I never really cared for listening to Sinead O’Connor,
it just never spoke to me. I remember when she ripped up the Pope picture on TV
and everybody had faux outrage, which seemed weird to me because the pope meant
nothing to my godless rural American ass, but thankfully the whole world is
nihilistic and jaded now, so something like that wouldn’t register a blip. By
now we know all our institutions have failed us generally, and everything is
doomed in the institutional sense, but fuck it, we can still carve out marginal
autonomy somehow, I guess. Anyways, hearing Prince do this song himself really
drove home how thankful I am I didn’t fuck around with Sinead O’Connor, because
wasn’t this like her only good song? If that’s not true, tell me in the
comments, and I’ll get in rectifying my opinion, BECAUSE NONE OF ON THE
INTERNET ARE ANYTHING EXCEPT ARCHIVAL CURATORS OF ALL OF POP CULTURE. IT IS THE
POINT OF OUR EXISTENCE, TO BURDEN OURSELVES WITH OPINIONS ON ALL THIS
MEANINGLESS GARBAGE CONSUMERIST FAUX ART. So help me waste my life, further,
because I’m not dead yet. At least not physically.
W33K3ND W4ND3RS 4L0NG TH3...
Label Labyrinth:
gambleraku,
homepix,
James River,
railroad tie tapping,
thrift store pimp
Sunday, November 3
S1MPL1C1TY 0F H00PT13...
Label Labyrinth:
car machines,
gambleraku,
homepix,
so fresh and so clean clean,
things people drive
Saturday, November 2
GR1M4C1NG 4T TH3 PR0SP3CT...
Label Labyrinth:
gambleraku,
graffiti,
homepix,
thrift store pimp,
work history
Friday, November 1
4N0TH3R 4B4ND0N3D B0X...
Label Labyrinth:
abandonment,
building or destroying,
economics,
gambleraku,
homepix
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