A parting post - Rothko, Radiohead and a poem

Tomorrow, I head to Los Angeles for a weekend of Andrew Bird at the The Orpheum Theatre, Amoeba Music (then I'll have visited all three locations), Buffalo Exchange, good food, and most importantly, solid time away from work and landlock. Hopefully there will be reportage from the battle front, some good vinyl and wardrobe finds, and as always, intellectual and spiritual enlightenment. Or at least some good laughs.

Upon departing, I leave you with a poem I wrote several years ago, the painting which inspired the poem, by one of my favorite artists, Mark Rothko, and two songs from the bonus b-sides disc of Radiohead's recent release, In Rainbows. "Last Flowers" and "4 Minute Warning" are the two most simply constructed songs on the disc and they show how easy it is for Radiohead to write straightforward, beautiful tunes, even if it is their complicated compisitions that give them their most praise. What amazes me about the band is just how great even their b-sides are. Rothko and Radiohead share a cozy place near my soul. Last time I checked, you could find the Rothko original at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.

Mark Rothko, No. 14, 1960

No. 14, 1960

The docent asked how it made us feel,
A pallette of red, darkness.
"Violence."
"Rage."
"Hate."
Heads bobbed in unison.
Their assumptions soon validated
By the guide's eager gossip,
Your late-life suicide.

As the group's feet echoed
Unenthusiastically into another atrium
I stood, transfixed with warmth,
Alone in the pure passion -
Your painting.

Emotion framed on canvas.
A scraggly, fading rectangle surrounded
By a deep crimson darkness.

Life is simple and messy and pure.

-J.D. Nielsen

Last Flowers
4 Minute Warning