Benny Russell -4/12/2010

.

You are the same as I am

you had a dream once
and still do

after a show
if only a single person
comes up and tells me
they liked what they heard
then I still dream

I still live
own myself
my life

what you call self-obsessed
I call self-possessed
so I come to you
from the other side of that line
to tell you
not to tell me
dreams don’t matter
don’t tell me you can’t do it
don’t tell me that you’re passed it
because you never mastered it
yet

so you picked up a brush once
and found out in five minutes flat
you couldn’t paint a Picasso
straight off the bat
now you say to me you can’t draw

well, FUCK YOU

because that sentiment insults the rest of us
who have dreamed we are impossible things
guess what
waking dreams don’t come easy

so I come to you
from the other side of that line
to tell you it is possible
pursuing is living that dream
and if that’s as close as you ever get
you’ve gotten a lot further
in making the attempt
than just sitting there waiting for death

I have dreamt myself as an impossible thing
an unpractical man
never been published never won a slam
here I still stand

still itching to be sticking it to the man

so
dream yourself awake
write yourself sane
fuck yourself silly
read yourself full
run yourself empty

have yourself fun
doing it

fight for what you want
take what you need
work at it until it bleeds
until the struggle heads

until you are down on your knees

still chasing that dream

make your life more than a mediocre effort
because the only other thing
life will offer after all this
is a one way trip


ending in a permanent grave yard shift.




______________________________


The penultimate piece from "Smarty and Randall Are Taking You For A Ride"




-Peace




.

Fear -5/12/2010

.

Can't take my eyes off her.

perched in the corner
all shiny
long legs and a lot of eyes
oh she has allota eyes.

the shape of her body
terrifies

plays on primal fears of mine
I know her kind
she devours the male
after mating

go near her
she'd move so fast
with those long legs
you'd end up
just another little bug


caught in her web.



__________________________________


I have a few female friends. Some are convinced I'm not a misogynist. I never make their lives any easier.




-Peace





.

They Were Just Taking You For a Ride -5/12/2010

.

Thanks to everyone who came along and made yesterday a success.

The place was packed the vibe positive, the show itself for Steve and I was the culmination of many (many many) tag-team and duo reading for a whole spectrum of crowds, with many expectations. It was great to be able to finish up strong, and on home turf.

Especially thanks to my friends Alex Scott for his camera/work and Oren Gerassi for sorting out the sound, and Baz Daly for his assistance there too.

In preparing and shaping the material, 80-85% of which was new for yesterday, I want to acknowledge the advice, support and generosity of spirit of Sam Zifchak, Amy Bodossian, Meaghan Bell, Laura Smith, Alex Scott, as well as my dear housemates Matt Juers and Chris Cheeken.

And of course, Mister Steven Smart ~ the man I can't kill.

You guys... while spending more money on yesterday than I made back, with friends like you I'm a very rich man indeed.

Excepting a quick trip to Wollongong and Sydney next week, that's it for Mr $ on stage for a while, at least in this country. Though I will now blog here most of the material I've was holding for this gig. Watch this space.

Have a good summer y'all, get lots of sunshine and smiles and hugs and look forward to next year as much as I am.

Dream awake. Make your life extraordinary.

-Randall $tephens,

December 5th 2010

______________________________












-Peace








.

The Night Shift -1/12/2010

.

Forty push ups at sunrise

forty more done four minutes later

four nights in a row now

forecast for a nice day

for whatever that’s worth.




Forgot when you last restocked your station

fourth customer in the last forty five minutes

fortunately a nod’s enough to greet them this late-early in the day

forlorn faces looking at mine for a loophole

for the love of god there are some fuckups foraging around out there

for the grace of god I do not go... there.


Four more small tabs ripped off milk from the fridge

four cups of coffee gone cold half drunk

foremost on your mind, is stay alert

four times you thought the boss was gonna bust you asleep

force of will now all that’s keeping you awake

but when will it be 9am already




for fucks fucken sake.







__________________________








-Peace

Instigator -28/10/2010

.

The kindest thing I'll say about today is,

my choice to start it off

with a 3 hour documentary on the Holocaust,

probably didn't help.

_____________

-Peace

.

Randall and Smarty Are Taking You For A Ride

.
Some flyers to prmote our upcoming gig at the Dan O Connell:



After their microphones were taken away,

after the money ran out,

after using up the bar tab before going on stage,

counting the number of berets in the crowd,

getting lost on the way to Lismore,






...watching that uninsured windscreen crack get bigger and bigger (and bigger),

after talking philosophy with teenagers at the drive through,

sleeping on the platform waiting for the first train

seeing the best, and worst, performance poets in Australia,

and after visiting Wagga Wagga...








...Steve Smart and Randall $tephens have some stories to tell you.



The two poets who turned the word ‘fuckhead’ into a verb, are now bringing their sleep-deprived synergy developed on the road together back home, as the “Taking Arses and Kickin' Names” tour comes to Melbourne.

A few things will make this Dan O Connell gig special. Because this is Randall’s last Melbourne appearance before embarking on an epic two-month solo tour of New Zealand in early 2011, we’ll be passing around the hat (yes, THE hat!) to help keep him away from us as long as possible.

Also, we’re going to record the event on our brand new whiz-bang crackerjack fancy-pants recorder, for the next CD release. So come along for the chance to have the sound of your confusion, disgust and outrage immortalised in a 4 track, 24-bit 96kHz digital recording.


Tremendous. See you there!




______________________________





-Peace







.

June Twenty Two (4th redux) -28/11/2010

.

It found you, again.

Walking the night
in another city
you'd never been before
yet looking
like so many others
you’d been to
since June twenty-two.

The date
that you
left her.

Now this lonely planet
bookshelf blur
of single serve countries
of long forgotten lessons
from phrasebook collections
and you’ve lost count
of their exact
numbers now
how many foreign tongues
have you gotten tied with?
how much have you
misunderstood
bluffed your way through
de-creased in the map folds
the passport pages dog eared
the blank stares you’ve coffee stained
how much time lost or gained
in time zone changes?

You long ago quit counting.

Without doubt
you must have walked down
hundreds of such strips by now
stretching back further
than you can remember
but never
have you failed
to retain this date,
today’s date.

June Twenty Two.

Before then you’d never pursued
the taste of foreign food
never sought sights Saharan
Himalayan Mediterranean
metropolitan cosmopolitan
never knew the freedom
of forty eight hour friends
light but for the weight of a pack
no ball and chain holding you back
you’ve beaten back the beaten track
no home except where you hang your hat
go it alone instead of taking out a loan
no mortgage on your future
you live cash and carry
question and answer
living affirmation and hopes
reasons and regrets
right out of your system
and right around the globe.

Despite a do-before-you-die list
now carved down by half
tonight your eyes can’t help
but pave new paths
all over with old memories
your confusion
of those old feelings
too consuming
to have sustained
too childish
to have lasted
too sincere
to have survived
too real
to have forgotten
or ever really gotten over
no matter where you go
the world over.

The date eventually rolls round
three years now
since leaving after that final-fight
to go and find out she was...
wrong.

Said amongst the latter
and bitterer
blows you exchanged
she uttered, (almost a whisper)
a kind of curse
and worse
than any other thing
she tried to put on you
that June Twenty Two,

Angry tears welled in her eyes
fell defiant as she prophesised
that
for all your living
outside the box
no matter what
you won’t ever,
you would never,
now and forever
be able to find
another woman
like her.

and...

She
was wrong
about
everything.

She was wrong about everything,




except that.






__________________________








-Peace





.

Known -13/11/2010

.
You know
I'd do it too.

bring it all to an end
taunting you
give me a reason
one fucking reason
not to
just quit

but I know
already
you won't give me one.

so I sit back down
get to work, again
and wait
for another day


to liquidate this silence.






___________________




-Peace








.

TWO SHELLS –(redux) 29/10/2010

.


I'm glad that you're glad that I'm here

it was one of those
odd
one in one thousand
-odds
sort of things

we were just eggs
once
amongst thousands
of the hopeful hopeless
living lives unfertilised
waiting exposed
coasting lines
fighting random chance
the fickleness of beach sands
as a cradle
and the lap
of every wave
that did not want us


we
have hard shells


and we've held
vulnerabilities
moist
within ourselves
scaled up our skin
kept wet this way
well plated
to stay safe

only in coming together
in crossing that distance
could we trace shapes
of the faintest footprints
leading to where the land
will become a liquid
and slowly away
from shore
tides taking us out
into new realms
to explore

now

we can
learn to ocean-swim
I can
teach you my smile
you can
show me how to dive
we can
make bubbles underwater

I will
fish for your compliments
watch schools of tiny creatures
almost invisible
go scatter around our legs

we’ll float on our backs
cast shadows below
only looking back
to avoid
the occasional speedboat
buoy
or other human garbage

watch me attack waves
with my flippered limbs
splashing around like an idiot
you can show me ways
to breathe
out here
just beyond shallow

we will
lose
the smudged shore line
forget
where I left my things
get
salty all over
tread
the clear water
prune
this pale skin
find
where our fins
won't scrape the bottom
come
right out of our shells
bold
daring depths to make us cold

now we know
depths down below
know it deep
that there’s life
(there is life)
out there
in distance
liquid
and it’s fragile
and colourful and poisonous
and fast and deadly dangerous
and it was ours
for a few hours
before our darwinian amphibian swim
had to come
back in

for
sure
inspite what we learnt
we become reserved

because still
we know deeper down
when back on dry ground
we’ll need then

these hard shells



once again.




_______________________________




-Peace





.

In Short -25/10/2010

.

Alone in a house

dark and empty

the only light on here

is mine.

Writing

out of control

and wished

in so many words

that I was.

________________________

-Peace

.

Incendiary Remarks (redux) -20/10/2010

.
Cracked lips
myself to blame
matches slipped
with eyes aflame.

Reflected light
a smoky night
and I am a little,

thirsty now.

But we don't
need no water...

Not on this side
of the river.

The smile of mine
only a little guilty
meanwhile I find
their looks are just plain filthy.

Cast from over there
and ah fuck it
can just let 'em glare.

it's all my side your side
food hand bitten,
and some wounded pride.

they'll bitch and they'll moan
and that's well enough
I'll leave them alone.

So cliche as they say -live, and learn

though had no idea
how much I'd enjoy


watching that fucking bridge, now burn.


___________________________________


"well, I'll admit watching it burn wasn't exactly tragic..."
~ Garak, Deep Space Nine




-Peace










.

Strange Famous -19/10/2010

.

I wanted to shake my idol's hand,

while shaking an instinctive need
to quickly snatch my hand back
for fear that this contact
would linger too long
and b-b-become
uh,
um yeah ...y'know like ah aw-awkward.

I wanted to shake his hand
long enough to look him in the eye
while telling him he helped me
make sense of senseless times
living the lie, life more ordinary
when only the sound of his music
helped me sooth it,
stop me from losing it
and that that song I Keep Moving
I kept playing it
over and over to get through it.

Words turned walls into doors
now I too get out on tours
and I got fans just like you,
if uh, well uh, okay,
maybe really only like a few.

So I said hi said thanks said cool,
and wanted to say to Sage then
that he first inspired me to pick up a pen
after years spent
as a dormant doormat to begin again
when my life was lying broken
he inspired me to go for broke


But I don't.


'cause I'm as self conscious
as he is
and don't want to come across
as some salivating fan
even though that's exactly what I am
aping his appearance
having half his work memorised
and always evangelise
all my friends about him
at any chance given.

Yeah nah~

It would have been an awful lot to articulate
during one late night post show sweaty hand shake
and also an unfortunately, awkwardly intense way
to start a conversation
with someone
whom you don't actually know.

It's probably a little too undignified
telling this guy
his words changed my life
swear that he's saved that my life
or that,
He's the reason
I'm doing
what I'm doing
today.

Besides,


He probably gets that all the time.







__________________________________

Randall $tephens

1980 -2010

(it's been a pleasure)




-Peace




.

Under the Covers with Randall #1: The 'Mad as Hell' speech from Network

.

Back in August my friends and I did a two-set feature for Brunswick Hotel’s Passionate Tongues, paying tribute to film, poetry and music that has been either influence or inspiration. One of my goals for the event was to encourage others to seek out the artists work themselves and share the joy I’ve received from exposure to it. To extend on that idea, I thought it would be now helpful to compose a blog entry here to give you that resource.

Not to make any assumptions I’ve written each assuming you know nothing about any of the artists, and explain how I came about them myself. Where relevant I’ve included bios written by the artists themselves. I’ve links to YouTube have been included wherever I could find the original material, as well as links to whatever projects or resources they have available to share.

We performed a total of 21 pieces that night by as many different artists. I was originally going to attempt covering it all in two blogs, but it’s just gotten too long. I know while you’re out there browsing, it’s better to keep a thing bite sized, and that’s what Tales Told by an Idiot is all about.

Part 1:



The “Mad as Hell” Speech from Network –
Written by Paddy Chayefsky (performed by Peter Finch)

(click here to view)

Network sits in my top ten all time favourite films. For me it’s the archetypical movie of the 1970s Hollywood’s pre-blockbuster golden age. The powerful writing and acting have lost none of their power or relevance, the film still delivers on its bitter cynical, radical and brilliantly conceived of the entertainment industry and consumer culture. This speech delivered so deftly by Peter Finch is only one of the dozen plus great monologues in the piece.

The film is easy to find on DVD.
More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074958/

I thought it was a good note to start the night off on. The monologue progressively but rapidly builds to this crescendo of legitimately righteous outrage, as opposed to any great ideological truth. For me, Chayefsky’s words spoke to my notion that one’s desire for change should be personal and motivated by your own indignation, no matter your well-intentioned political leanings.

There was an added synergy for me in opening with a bit of Network. Just as I wanted to use this gig to help other discover new, previously unheard sources of oratory, Network in turn was a film I discovered inadvertently, the sole reason I knew of it or had a reason to watch it in the first instance was only because I’d seen it imitated in Weird Al Yankovic’s UHF (another favourite film of mine).

______________________________________________

Well, that's one down, twenty more to go.

Next time: My Town -Buddy Wakefield






-Peace

.

So So -11/10/2010

.


you made me so angry,

so I had to tell you
I was angry


then you got angry
too


(oh boy did you get angry)


now we're both angry


together


so...


does this mean
you are angry
at me,




or just, with me?





_____________________________





-Peace





.

Empty Handed -11/10/2010

.

It was when I realised
wandering around Sydney
that although I wanted
to come home
with something
for her.

I actually had no idea
what this gift could be.

No idea what she likes
what she is interested in
what sparks her imagination
makes her tick
or could make her smile.

No idea
what I could give
to make her
feel special.

So in the end,
I gave up
and came back


without anything for her.





____________________




-Peace