Ásta’s Song

‘Mengi’ event, Brooklyn, 12 May 2023
 

she does a performance that involves screaming

more formally you might say vocal improv I would say screaming

what I think of it I’m not yet loosened up enough to say

they are quite pale the musicians mostly Icelanders mostly improv

who has trouble with improv, well, who does not

I don’t know if it’s good I don’t know what good is

we are unmoored the good and I

she screams for a good long time

that’s something else about improv the long time

is it hard to exist as someone who screams

does it entail knowing what good is

does it entail monogamy (hello plums!)

is improv screaming done well by men

historically no, I’m sorry but there is a history here

a scream to me is fingers reaching in where they shouldn’t and pulling this from that

screaming is not poetic but I see an affinity

then I think aha! I should know first what a poem is

a poem is fine while it keeps going

when it ends it may occasion a sense of unreality

so too screaming

is it other people who play at life or is it me

screaming she is tense as grass

screaming she is studying screaming

screaming comes the fear what if like the Mensheviks we are involved in a project of failure

sometimes art is just noise

can it change you I would like to know

maybe that’s enough for now

we have acquired so much just think

just think can we now let it drift

she lets it drift the history the everything

is this good for the mind

is this a cold suet pudding

did Flaubert make love with his hat on in brothels

have you any more questions

the best thing I got to was this from that