Best Spoken Word

We cramped our brains a little trying to figure out whether it still counts as “spoken word” if you print it in a book, but whatever it is, we enjoyed JAVA MONKEY SPEAKS, VOLUME 2, an anthology of poems by poets who have performed at the weekly open mic at Decatur’s Java Monkey. Edited by Kodac Harrison and Collin Kelley, this second edition has some serious poetry power.
$12. Poetry Atlanta Press. 90 pages.www.poetryatlanta.com.

For several years now, one of the greatest cities for spoken word poetry failed to field a team for the National Slam Competition, but Atlanta is once again sending its finest slammers to the big game thanks to a series of lively local slam competitions at Java Monkey, organized by big-haired beatnik Kodac Harrison of POETRY ATLANTA, the community development extension of the Atlanta Review.
205 Ponce de Leon Ave. 404-378-5002. www.poetryatlanta.com.

Maybe it’ll never take the place of the defunct Yin-Yang Music Cafe, but at least the APACHE CAFE is trying. Though it struggled at first to find its niche, the Apache has since taken up the mantle vacated by Yin-Yang and has continued the tradition of bringing poetry, performance art and live music to an out-of-the-way corner of Midtown. Open-mic night, called Free Forum Exchange, is on Sundays.

“64 Third St. 404-876-5436.”

Kudos to KODAC HARRISON for fostering Atlanta’s spoken-word scene. Sure, he’s been a mainstay on local stages for years, but Harrison has expanded beyond his monthly Blue Plate Specials at the Gravity Pub in East Atlanta, now also offering Kodac’s Cool Corner at the Defoor Centre and appearing occasionally at Java Monkey in Decatur. Blending his signature “Beatnik Blues” with spoken-word and an eclectic musical lineup, this unique artist makes us crave even more Kodac moments.

“www.mindspring.com/~kodac.”