A hero (but not so sure)
looked up from his fear to see
the performance-enhancing lure
of Hecate’s pantry,
and indulged for thirty days,
one eye
on the winding hideout of the bull man.
And though he won the day,
he still shudders
at the cheap mortar of a gameplan:
“A million mornings long ago,
you must have thought you could conjure now.
Now that we’re in the know,
did you get your eureka?
“Wrong on either score:
no guesswork,
no dresswork stitched from intention.
We pace a shifting floor,
trick windows
and too many maybes to mention.”
Julie Byrne continues an increasingly necessary tradition of quietly offering musical artifacts that want to be climbed into and lived in (spelunked?), to be known, like company, rather than consumed. Brian Seabolt
The second EP from Northern Irish singer-songwriter Bea Stewart runs from gentle folk to pillowy pop ballads, all perfectly executed. Bandcamp New & Notable Apr 15, 2024