ROSEMARY BEADS

peeled up from sticky blue carpet again
a strut-rush up Hill Street to the last train
before smartphones, before MP3 downloads
shared a mixtape,
got a local band new release EP cassette tape
before your burnt CD release
now you just steal it.
Going. Going. Gone.
the dank-dead ghost of a hundred thousand spilt beers
and im in a tux with high-top sneakers,
face in the speakers
escaped from another gig
needed a backroom/coolroom fix, fat sideburns
and I know dave’s at the Grosvenor, he’s door-bitch tonight
and will he let me in, does Cutter know
that on wednesday night at
a cosy club front room, a dozen purple haired kids
sat cross-legged on the floor whispered,
chain smoking Kents, sipping water
for thermos cardy
Going. Going. Gone.
or was it at a big one in the backroom, coolroom
multi-staged weekend indie bliss,
turnstyle, jebediah, red jez
PB with the tigers, or someone, someone I know
and everyone’s in a band, man
cigarette butts stuck to my soul, my converse soul
middies spilt at the hydey, or the Swanbourne
and I’m cock-rock posing
shredding my flying V at the filthy Hydey peeling, ceiling
bass-rumble, can’t hear the vocals,
and we’re jumpin til close
launching CDs, standing on the foldback screaming
packed thick, tight sweat like punters in indie band tshirts
Going. Going. Gone.
And there’s something on my tongue
Up on Grosvenor Rooftop Car Park
Before Dirty Three and Magic Dirt
it’s a war in here. hotter than catching Adalita
doing vocal warmups in the smoky stairwell
and all the times we played the bakery
but not cooking for much longer
disappearing into the void of venues
a black hole of the swanborne, the ozone,
planet, Firm, mixing my mates, or standing in on bass
standing up on the pool table at the old Melbourne jamming
in front of the Animal bar. It’s a boutique bar now
like the Hyde Park and the other joints
or in a big backroom blur, where’s the Shents gone?
Upstairs at 78s, underground at His Maj
the Greenwich, Cinema Prague breaking my face
tearing new ones to newcomers
as the oldcomers go.
Going. Going. Gone.
Blue Tile Lounge, Adam said Galore, a version of Squadcar,
Can’t see yas at Devilles, YaYas, The Loft, Coronados, the Seaview, Harbourside, Castle, Manhattans, Velvet Lounge, The Orient, The Lone Star, The Castle, The Generator…
need a fibrilator.
now my axe is on the wall and all the venues are
Gone. Gone. Gone.