This Wednesday, August 31, the Holler poets will be celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Affrilachian Poets with a selection of poets curated by Frank X Walker and the musical stylings of DeBraun Thomas.
| When: | Wednesday, August 31, 2016 @ 8pm |
| Where: | Al’s Bar |
| 601 N Limestone | |
| Lexington, KY 40508 | |
| (859) 309-2901 |
The 98th monthly Holler Poets Series will feature poets Drew Pomeroy and Randi Ward as well as musical guests The Local Honeys.
Drew Pomeroy is an alumnus of Spalding University’s MFA in Creative Writing as well as a 2014 nominee for the Pushcart Prize. Pomeroy is the Poetry Editor for Winter Tangerine Review and lives in Louisville.
This will be Randi Ward’s Holler debut. Ward has spent a lot of time in Scandinavia with an MA in Cultural Studies at the University of the Faroe Islands and has ties to Norway and Iceland. Her newest book, Whipstitches, is available from MadHat Press.
The Local Honeys will also be celebrating their debut with the album Little Girls Actin’ Like Men. The Local Honeys is composed of Montana Hobbs and Linda Jean Stokley.
For more information, visit the Facebook Event page.
| When: | Wednesday, July 27, 2016 @ 8pm |
| Where: | Al’s Bar |
| 601 N Limestone | |
| Lexington, KY 40508 | |
| (859) 309-2901 |
Tonight’s Holler Poets Series will feature Affrilachian Poet Crystal Wilkinson, Accents Publishing’s own Christopher McCurry, and the musical stylings of Nicholas Penn.
Click here for the Facebook Event page.
Crystal Wilkinson’s The Birds of Opulence is currently available from University Press of Kentucky. It tells the story of the Goode-Brown family, particularly matriarch Minnie Mae, as they deal with mental illness and illegitimacy. Kate Weiss of Leo Weekly calls The Birds of Opulence “swift and beautiful”.
Christopher McCurry’s Nearly Perfect Photograph (Two of Cups Press) is a collection of marriage sonnets that will quickly resonate with any husband or wife. In an interview with Nettie Farris for New Southerner, Christopher says that he chose the sonnet because “Sonnets are supposed to put ideas, emotions, concepts, in conflict with one another” (source). The collection is all about the different kinds of conflict in a marriage-like relationship.
Nicholas Penn is a Lexington musician known for acoustic guitar and singing melancholy, but emotionally-charged, original songs. He has performed at various gatherings, recently performing at the Lexington Art League’s “Artist: Body” exhibit on March 25th. You can see one of his performances in the video below.
| When: | Wednesday, March 30, 2016 @ 8pm |
| Where: | Al’s Bar |
| 601 N Limestone | |
| Lexington, KY 40508 | |
| (859) 309-2901 |
The 92nd Holler Poets Series will feature readings from DaMaris Hill and Nettie Farris accompanied by music from The Woodsheep.
photo from University of Kentucky
DaMaris Hill is an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing and African American and Africana Studies at the University of Kentucky. Her latest poetry collection, \ Vi-zə-bəl \ \ Teks-chərs \ (Visible Textures) (Mammoth Publications, 2015) are inspired by GPS technology and deal with the space in Kansas of a 2013 highway that was, in 1854, an Indian reservation.
Nettie Farris is the author of Communion (Accents Publishing, 2013) and—most recently—Fat Crayons (Finishing Line Press 2015). According to her 2015 LexPoMo bio, Nettie spends her spare time writing poems, practicing yoga, attending mass, praying the rosary, and, like Alice, going to tea parties.
The Woodsheep are Andrew Preston and Austin Tackett. Hailing from Morehead, Kentucky, The Woodsheep “aim to highlight the diversity, creativity, and storytelling that abound in their ever-evolving eastern Kentucky home by shoring up their own roots” (source).
Open mic sign-ups start at 6:45. Also, don’t forget the cold, hard cash for books, albums, and donations into the Holler Bucket.
Along with the announcement of the 92nd Holler Poets Series reading, Eric Scott Sutherland announced that the 100th show would be the last monthly installment of the series.
| When: | Wednesday, January 27, 2016 @ 8pm |
| Where: | Al’s Bar |
| 601 N. Limestone Lexington, KY 40508 |
|
| (859) 309-2901 |
The 90th Holler Poets Series will feature award-winning poet Maggie Smith, Accents’ newest poet Jay McCoy, and musical guest Squeaky Feet.
Maggie Smith
(photo by Lauren Powers)
Maggie Smith has won awards for her books The Well Speaks of Its Own Poison (Tupelo Press, 2015) and Lamp of the Body (Red Hen Press, 2005). She is from Columbus, Ohio and received her Master of Fine Arts from The Ohio State University.
Jay McCoy is co-founder of the Teen Howl Poetry Series in Lexington, Kentucky (along with Elizabeth Beck). Teen Howl is an open-mic for the under-21 crowd and always hosts a teen and adult feature. Jay’s newest collection, The Occupation (Accents Publishing, 2015), is currently available from the Accents Store.
Squeaky Feet is a band featuring Arlo Barnette and Zoey Barrett. They also played at Holler 71 with GA Smith and Sherry Chandler. You can visit their Bandcamp page here or like them on Facebook.
Check out the Facebook Event page for more information.
| When: | Wednesday, November 18, 2015 @ 8pm |
| Where: | Al’s Bar |
| 601 N. Limestone | |
| Lexington, KY 40508 | |
| (859) 309-2901 |
image by John Lackey
The 89th Holler Poets Series will feature Accents Publishing’s Katerina Stoykova-Klemer, Pine Mountain Sand & Gravel’s Pauletta Hansel, and the musical guest will be WUKY’s DeBraun Thomas.
Katerina Stoykova-Klemer is Accents Publishing’s Senior Editor and founder; she also starred and co-wrote Thomas Southerland’s Proud Citizen.
Pauletta Hansel is celebrating her fifth book of poetry, Tangle (Dos Madres Press, 2015) which came out in September.
image by Bev Denton
Also, DeBraun Thomas is celebrating the release of his debut album All My Colors Are Blind.
Check out the Facebook Event page for more information.
| When: | Wednesday, October 28, 2015 @ 8pm |
| Where: | Al’s Bar |
| 601 N. Limestone | |
| Lexington, KY 40508 | |
| (859) 309-2901 |
image by John Lackey
The Holler Poet Series will have its 88th installment tonight with two debuts: upfromsumdirt and Bianca Bargo.
upfromsumdirt is the nom de plume of Ron Davis, one of the owners of The Wild Fig bookstore in Lexington, Kentucky. The Wild Fig is currently celebrating reopening at its new location. upfromsumdirt is also celebrating his book release, Caul and Response, a collection of poetry and artwork.
Bianca Bargo’s newest chapbook is How I Became an Angry Woman (Accents Publishing) which, according to Sarah Freligh, is a book that “autopsies a doomed love”. You can get a copy by clicking here, or you can read some of the poems by clicking here.
Musical guest Shaker Ray is a project from Thomas Usher, also known for Long Jumper and occasionally filling in with the Blind Corn Liquor Pickers.
Open Mic sign-ups begin at around 7pm and the show starts at 8pm. For more information, visit the Facebook Event page.
| When: | Wednesday, September 30, 2015 @ 8pm |
| Where: | Al’s Bar |
| 601 N. Limestone | |
| Lexington, KY 40508 | |
| (859) 309-2901 |
Accents Intern and Managing Editor of Rabbit Catastrophe, Robin LaMer Rahija, will be making her Holler debut tonight at 8pm, along with Rabbit Catastrophe Poetry Editor (and author of Zen and the Art of Bicycle Delivery) Mikey Swanberg. Musical accompaniment by local hip-hoppist Zach Daddy will cleanse the palate between poetry sets.
Open mic sign-ups start at 6:45pm, so be sure to “come early, dress in your finest hollerween costumers, and let’s get spooky.”
| When: | Wednesday, October 29, 2014 @ 8pm |
| Where: | Al’s Bar |
| 601 N. Limestone | |
| Lexington, KY 40508 | |
| (859) 3 09-2901 |