Rough Music is the old English name for a custom of public scapegoating. This collection, read here by the author, is full of disturbing musical echoes, in which brilliant renewals of carol, charm, folksong and ballad explore themes of violence, loss and belonging. Fiona Sampson's characteristic lyric intensity deftly fuses metaphysics and politics with the vernacular of dailylife.
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[Something is broken - / Milk not rising form the floor / to resume the shape of a jug / the stone splashed / with creamy stars THE BETRAYAL]***
(@SpokenInk, 3 May 2013, audiobook, 1 hour 9 minutes, borrowed from @natpoetrylib via @OverDriveLibs, narrated by @FionaRSampson)
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I've heard of the poet but had never read her work. I enjoyed this audiobook. I find its better when an author reads their own work in an audiobook. They bring the work to life more than another narrator could. I enjoyed listening to this. I'm working from home at the moment, COVID-19 and all that and I listened to the whole thing at the start of my shift and got absorbed in it. The poems explore a wide variety of themes. The best poems are Envoi, Rough Music, Out of the Attic, Crow Voodoo, Charms for Love and The Hare.
