Spoken word is having a moment—especially in music. From Hanne Lippard to Voice Actor, the fascination with vocal performance reaches far beyond niche appeal. In the US, vocal art has a rich tradition: from Allen Ginsberg’s early recordings in the 1950s to John Giorno’s visionary »Giorno Poetry Systems« label and its contemporary continuation through Anne Waldman’s Fast Speaking Music. One who has consistently carried this lineage forward is John M. Bennett, who has been publishing experimental poetry since 1979 via his imprint Luna Bisonte Prods.
Now, Blanksmanship—originally released as a tape in 1994 along with a 22-page booklet—is reissued on vinyl for the first time on Editions Basilic, the label run by his son John Also Bennett, a flautist and curator affiliated with RVNG Intl. and Freedom To Spend. Minimalist interludes on Japanese shakuhachi flute and bells introduce Bennett’s voice, which stretches, mutates, dances and jolts through his poems. He is no mere reciter, but a sculptor of language: his cadence, intonation and rhythmic breathwork create a hypnotic flow that draws you in—even without following the literal content. As with the best of Giorno’s poetry albums, Blanksmanship delivers sonic total poetry: an auditory trip into an America where language becomes the ultimate space of freedom—psychedelic, associative, and mind-expanding. No LSD required.
Blanksmanship
