This is the first full-length collection of poetry by the 28
year-old Gladeview, who presently lives in Colorado with his wife Rebecca- who features
in many of these poems. The 54 poems adopt a pared-down, lower case,
minimalistic style highly reminiscent of the American poet John Yamrus. The
poems are short narratives of less than 100 words and are characteristically geared
towards making a dryly humorous personal or social observation about ordinary
events- attending a funeral, visiting a chiropractor, ordering drinks,
discussing poetry, picking up a hitchhiker and the like.
The PigeonBike Press typeface is bright and shiny and
beautifully set-out. The cover includes a black & white cropped photo of a
remote escarpment by the British photographer Leonne Bennett which evokes a
raw, desolate feeling. In contrast, the title Just Ignore the Beer Stains is cheekily self-referential, asking
the reader to ignore the poet’s ‘beer stains’, that is, his youthful imperfections-
his purported romance with alcohol and the blemishes you might find in his
early writings.
Most of the poems are written in first person from “Larry’s”
point of view. The poems are often propelled by colloquial dialogue which
reveal, through irony and understatement, the misunderstandings or quirky ways
in which people attempt to communicate with each other. The collection is remarkably consistent in voice, subject
matter and technique but a few of the poems stand out. Personal favourites
include the terse car ad ‘Dad’s Classified’, ‘Thirsty & Forgetful’ about
the speaker being asked to show his ID at a bar he has frequented for years,
the metaphoric ‘Coming To Terms’ in which Larry likens his relationship to his
woman to that of a cocker spaniel being dragged along a street, and ‘Poetry
Needs To Be Natural’, in which the poet tongue-in-cheek expresses his poetics: ‘Poetry
Needs To Be Natural/ not/ forced/ like the/ coat closet/ quickie/ before/ your
auntie’s/ memorial.’
Overall, perhaps too many poems in the collection are about
poetry or the writing process which creates the impression that Gladeview has lived
thus far through the narrow prism of poetry rather than through hardened experience.
As you read through his work you often sense the artifice, of Gladeview
meta-fictionally mythologizing his relationship with his wife and his readers. And
unlike Yamrus, don’t expect profound glimpses into the human condition.
Gladeview is simply and unambiguously mapping out his first joyful steps of
discovery. He has plenty of time to unbolt the veneer and express the misery and
terror which awaits us all.
That said, it is certainly refreshing to read a new
small-press poet who is not wallowing in a drug or alcoholic induced fog of
self-loathing. Gladeview’s humour sometimes appears contrived but it can also be
hugely appealing. And it is his candid, intimate tone which really makes this
book sing.
An Interview with Lawrence Gladeview
27 February 2012
Bold
Monkey: When did you first develop an interest in poetry and who were some of
your early influences?
Lawrence Gladeview: I began to read poetry with the
writing of Shel Silverstein. His poems share stories and characters
through a genuine and humorous voice, something that I admire and influences my
own writing. My late college years were when I truly started to pay
attention to poetry and began reading poets Yusef Komunyakaa, Amiri Baraka,
Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, and Charles Bukowski. It wasn’t until a few
years after college that I really put a pound of flesh into poetry, began to
grow as a writer, and introduce myself to more underground poets like John
Macker, Michael Adams, John Yamrus, Todd Moore; and gals like Ann Menebroker,
Puma Perl, and Lyn Lifshin.
Bold Monkey: According to your web page: http://lawrencegladeview.com/ you started publishing your
poetry in 2009. Can you briefly recount the events leading up to your decision
to finally submit your work in 2009?
Gladeview: At
the time I started submitting my writing to publications, I was sharing my
poems with friends and workshopping pieces online. From there it turned
into mailing out poems in an SASE, submitting electronically, and posting
pieces to my now defunct Righteous Rightings blog. Over the past few
years I have been very lucky to have my poems featured here and there in print
and online, but the fire burns most when those rejection slips find their way
into my mailbox and makes me punch the keys harder.
Bold
Monkey: You
graduated from James Madison University with a degree in English. I’m curious
as to what you studied there, especially the texts, lessons and experiences
which may have stimulated you to write.
Gladeview: Most
of my study at James Madison focused on African American literary genres and
Eastern European authors, although here and there I would have a Period
American Poetry class or Writing Composition workshop. But the single
most explosive experience of my college years was attending the Furious Flower
Poetry Conference held on campus in 2004. The conference featured the
most illuminating, contemporary African American voices in poetry including
Amiri Baraka, Nikki Giovanni, Yusef Komunyakaa, and Gwendolyn Brooks among
others.
Bold
Monkey:
I recall reading somewhere that you arrived late to ‘underground’ poetry. Why
the interest and what magazines and writers first appealed to you and why?
Gladeview: Underground
poetry has no rules, says something authentic, and above all makes the reader
react. Billy Collins reads up on a stage behind a pulpit using vocabulary
no one understands to describe something that’s already been said. Meanwhile,
Tony Moffeit is taking up at a local poetry reading wearing leather pants with
a snakeskin belt, wielding a harmonica and singing the blues.
Bold
Monkey:
There are thousands of magazines out there. What are a few that showcase the
type of poetry you enjoy reading? What specific qualities do they have which
draw you in?
Gladeview: PigeonBike,
Epic Rites, and Lummox Press are three publishers that do a great job printing
high quality writing from diverse poets and artists. The time and
dedication these guys put into their projects shows in the product; who
wouldn’t want their poems featured in a publication like that? Their
authors are provocative and unapologetic, writing addictive poems and stories
that deliver the goods on authentic human sentiment.
Bold
Monkey: Can you discuss your initial
involvement with PigeonBike Press and your subsequent dealings with the editor R.L.
Raymond in the publication of Just Ignore
the Beer Stains?
Gladeview: Rob
approached me about possibly doing a book last summer and I immediately jumped
on it. I had been featured in a few PigeonBike magazines and was familiar
with Rob’s commitment to print publishing and featuring the very best.
From then on we started to get together a manuscript of poems, paying close
attention to order and trimming the fat. By late November, Just Ignore
The Beer Stains was available for purchase and the final product could not
be more well constructed. Rob never compromised in the process of putting
out this collection and it shows.
Bold
Monkey: I
have read many of your earlier poems in which you adopt a wide range of forms
and styles- some which are quite sophisticated and experimental. The obvious
question is- Why do you adopt throughout Beer
Stains a pared down, minimalistic style, highly reminiscent of John
Yamrus’s?
Gladeview: I
have been writing for over five years now, and over that time I have been
finding my voice and solidifying my identity as a writer, and that growth comes
from pocket haikus, bourbon narratives, and travel lodge tales. John has
been a great supporter of my poetry the past year and has always been kind in
offering his feedback and advice. Just Ignore The Beer Stains is a
collection of poems smart-ass in attitude, humorous in behavior, and aged in a
bottle.
Bold
Monkey: What’s next for you?
Gladeview: I
have a few poems selected for publication in PigeonBike and Epic Rites projects
coming out this year that I am very excited about. I also have a couple
of readings planned around the Boulder and Longmont, Colorado area this spring
and summer.
Bold Monkey: Lawrence, thanks for taking the time
to answer my questions and to let me enter your world.
Gladeview: I
just want to thank you again for your dedicated approach to this review, I
cannot express my thanks enough. Look forward to continued fantastic
reading on Bold Monkey and will be sure to keep in touch! Cheers.
A list of Gladeview’s previous publications can be found on
his impressive looking website- LAWRENCE GLADEVIEW: Barroom Raconteur, Cocksure
Lover and Foul-Mouthed Poet:
http://lawrencegladeview.com/
