You would think the slam after the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word would be a bit light. But that was not the case. At all. Poetry fans packed the Drake Hotel Underground and we hit capacity by 815, and 20 poets tried to make the 11 spots available (Kliggy was a guarantee).
Once the poetry began, we knew we were in for a treat. Seasoned poets hit the stage, such as Krystle and Electric Jon, but we also got a taste of some fresh faces (Iyah, Marcus, aforementioned Kliggy). First round was crazy eclectic, lots of unique voices, even a team piece courtesy of EJ and Eytan Crouton.
Second round gave us some more range - Kliggy waxed poetic on a car wash and David Delisca told us about an unfortunate McDonald's visit. Krystle performed the solo version of a team piece she does with Amanda, scoring some serious 9s. In fact, Krystle and LipBalm and David D. moved on to the third round.
Which was pure fire. DD dropped his classic BlackBerry poem while LipBalm delivered some poignant funny verse. Then Krystle told us why she doesn't like the grey area between black and white, and no surprise got a whack of 10s. The vet took it, earning a bye into the semis, congrats Ms. Mullin!
Let's not forget the sick feature, Megan Ann Ward of Montreal. She had the packed Drake eerily still for her powerful set, and the applause after erupted like an explosive climax. And yes, Megan did have a kickass poem about sex.
Join us next month when we feature Jovan Mays from Denver, his first Canadian appearance! Nov. 26 @ the Drake Hotel, doors 7pm, $5.
