Eileen Myles’ singular voice cuts through clutter with a profound sense of place. Exclusive interview, an essay and the clarity of work: poems and a fragment from “Inferno”, a poet’s novel.

Eileen Myles photographed by Viktoria Krane

Eileen Myles: Loving This World

By Edwin Torres

What an ear on Eileen Myles— to not only uncover, but to capture the underlying truth out of the simplest phrase. The hardest thing to do for a poet, to mine and unearth the gems that move us. And if that’s the definition of what it means to be a poet, then she is a poet’s poet. Before identity interferes with the words we have the voice, the singular infinite whose job it is to reveal. Eileen’s singular voice cuts through clutter with a profound sense of place. I always get a sense of honor from her work, as if she understands her being as a vessel is to get out of her own way. That she’s able to dissappear like that while presenting such a powerful focal point, is why she resonates across such a wide spectrum. Through the writing of course…but also the form, the line break, we get to the underlying truth, the world revealed.

I want to leave my introduction at this point, let the work speak for itself. It was a great experience to collect the pieces for Rattapallax…revisiting her work is a humbling reminder for clarity. Stacy Szymasek’s interview uses the interwoven engine of Leslie Scalapino to bring us current, from Eileen’s time as director of the Poetry Project to the ‘real’ America back to breath again. And CA Conrad’s essay summarizes beautifully the Myles arc: a never-starting geometric that passes through staccato id from the perspective of another brilliant poet who happens to be a lifelong fan, and whose life was indeed saved by Eileen’s poetry. Thank you Stacy and CA…and Eileen, for your work and for participating in Rattapallax’s online debut.

Eileen Myles reads an excerpt from INFERNO (a poet’s novel) from Rattapallax on Vimeo.

Animated by Scott Gelber, filmed by Leland Krane and produced by Rattapallax and Teleportal Readings. Filmed at the Bowery Poetry Club.