The Orange Spotlight

Derrick C. Brown Scandalabra (Write Bloody, March 1st)

"You laugh so hard in Chicago/your ribs rip and it feels like you're kissing/a dark-haired woman/in an elevator full of beetles./Best people in the whole damn world/18 degrees and still barbequing. - from "Chicago, Illinois"

I've always chosen to focus on the wall flowers, those with brilliant words in their back pockets, waiting for the world to look their way. However, when I received latest collection from the favorite poet of David Cross and Hillary Duff I was curious to see what the secret was. What did he do or what does he do that so many have failed or perhaps chosen not to do? How do you remain a self-published, independent poet, but become incredible well-known and widely read?

The reality is that Derrick Brown has worked hard at his craft to achieve this level of success. He has toured relentlessly, opening for indie rock bands, traveling the country with other poets just to be heard. He continually puts himself and his words into the public eye. It's that and the fact that Derrick can weave his way through any image and draw reference to the wildest and most original reality. The parallels that he draws are unmatched and continually draws on all that fills his life. From lust to childhood memories to war stories to tour memories to a series of the funniest poems I've read in a long time, Scandalabra is a complete collection that will lead you through the soul of great writer with the drive to make it happen.

Marissa Nadler Little Hells (Kemado Records, March 3rd)

I was hoping to get this review in before all of the snow melted, but at least as I write this the sky is the color of that old gray and cracked water hose. It sprays water in all directions and the crisp and cleansing rain is washing away all traces of the "Little Hell" that was the winter of 2008. I am listening to an album that was built for slightly colder days, the icy-steel Midwestern snow day. The humming chill of strings and reverb shroud the poorly lit room and slowly give way to the sullen soprano of Boston's Marissa Nadler.

This is Nadler at her most introspective, her most honest, her most exposed. On her fourth album, Little Hells, Nadler explores the sadness of our journey, but what makes March such a fitting month for this album is the gentle undercurrent of hope. It is this hope that fills the album with a sense of balance both lyrically and musically. Her sonic journey has finally brought her to a level of understanding of the small fractions of sound and her songs are now filled with all the luscious details of life. She has come out of the Winter and its Little Hells, and has blossomed into the passion and richness of Spring.

Listen to: River of Dirt (mp3)