CMCHRISTIAN ALVAREZ
KINDS OF BLACK
interview and photography JORGE PEREZCHICA
So, tell us about yourself and your new book of poetry.
I’m from the Bay Area and was raised in Arizona. I performed music most of my life and writing really took hold when I discovered the beat writers and slam/def poet scene. I was fortunate enough to hit the road with Saul Williams as his drummer and met heroes of mine that were MCs and poets and gave me a hope that you can make your way doing what you consider a dream. The title is a riff on Miles Davis’ “Kinds of Blue.” When I listen to certain music or read certain authors work a certain feeling, a wash of emotion sets a mood and hopefully this is something readers can do with my work. This is the latest of 11 books and it is my favorite currently. Probably because it’s the baby, but it is a big collection — maybe 60 poems.
Who is the woman on the cover?
That was a romantic goofy selfie taken at the Rumor Hotel in Las Vegas back a few years ago with an old flame… I’m a huge fan of the Blue Note record covers and being able to have covers on the books and artwork takes me back to reading liner notes and staring at the album covers with headphones on. I want to record versions of my work with music and this summer when I have reading dates in L.A., Phoenix, and clear up to Seattle, I hope to bring along the aspect of live art, a DJ, and various forms of live music.
When you moved to the Coachella Valley — did your writing style change?
It was a side thing for me when I got here. I had just gotten off tour and when I landed here in Palm Springs. I was in a few musical projects mostly in the studio or up in Twenty-Nine Palms with guys I’ve made music with for years in that lush scene, but writing took over. The valley has a certain vibe that no where else can match. The desert is magical and mysterious and beautiful. It is a perfect place to get away or be on the pulse of everything.
From your experience, what have been some of the most difficult things to express in your poetry?
I wanted to tell stories and true stories bare-bone, but I didn’t want to get in trouble or name names and really felt uncomfortable, so I thought about a painting and how a moment was expressed fully in a still. This led me to believe I could use metaphors and words to express the feelings behind the scene giving the reader all the tools needed to not only try to figure out what I was talking about but how those unspoken feelings were easily related to. Some of the most difficult things in life are only able to be expressed through art and poetry. To me it is a perfect way to tell the ins and outs of a scenario and leave that mark for others to see.
What are your currently working on?
I’m currently writing a web series with Anthony D’Juan out of Sacramento. I’m also working on a one-man play with him to be performed over a two-night live filming this year. The other project is a dinner theater play involving a couple and a waiter. But mostly for now DailyOne poems on my Facebook and photo posts on my Instagram.
INSTAGRAM: @CHRISTIANALVAREZ
WEB: BEATPOETFLASH.COM
((Why I Sleep))
why I sleep
picture me taking my suitcase
from the bent track closet
a logo’d pill
a bag of tricks
long enough to live on
incase the morning late
if this night
to utter cut
tonight in dreams the smiling boy
knows that smooth means time
and wrinkles mean soft
that fur needs to be petted
eyes need to be fed
and that if he wears a bird suit
with flippers
a squirrel tail
and a fireman’s hat
he could climb a high tree
leap into the sky
fly inside the clouds
plunge into the sea
channeling the puissant swell
to douse the dancing flames obeisant
tonight the smiling boy
knows only that if’s mean yes
that maybe’s are just pauses before serenity
and no’s
is a thing that allows you to breathe in the scent
of mothers hair
and rain
and tiny pieces of light