ture bridges,” Dekker said. “It’s not as
racially diverse as it is ethnically diverse.”
Colin Wonnacott went to his first society
meeting after a local poetry slam. “They
went first, and said they were from the
Black Poets Society,” he explained. “I went
up and mentioned that I wasn’t a member
and Brian shouted out ‘You are now!’ The
first meeting I went to, I felt kind of intimi-
dated, like I didn’t belong. But everyone
was so friendly.”
Alex Johnson (l), Brandon Grundy (background)
and Brian Dekker (r) of the Black Poets Society.
In front of a packed room,
members read aloud as
they shook with rage,
leaned in close to the au-
dience or stood, looking
shy and frail, in front of
the microphone.
The Black Poets Society
Poetry of the people
BY ROBIN CANFIELD
I
n the Black Poets Society you can
speak your mind. The society exists
to promote self-expression that
opens and engages the minds of oth-
ers. When all the colors of the rain-
bow come together, they make black — and
that’s the essence of the group’s philosophy.
OSU Associate Professor Michael
Ingram co-founded the now 15-person
group in 1998. Today he acts as a role
model and advisor and is also an active par-
ticipant in the society. “As an organization,
we try to maintain a socially active and
aware presentation,” said current society
president Brian Dekker. One of the key
parts of the group is friendship. Members
often become close at meetings and are al-
ways at readings to cheer each other on.
“I first got involved with poetry because
of hip hop,” said former society president
Alex Johnson, “The Black Poets Society al-
lowed me to bridge the gap between aca-
demics and spoken word.” He met society
co-founder Melvin Young when he first
came to the campus and was inspired to
keep the group going after most of the orig-
inal members finished school. Now he
serves as an advisor. “I help current mem-
T a k e th e S ta i r s
Introducing Stairway Denied.
By Alana Yankus
A
s the music begins, listeners do a double-take. Is that Zeppelin? A sort of
“Rock on, kudos to the men who gave the world ‘Stairway to Heaven’“ ripples
through the crowd. But wait…this is live, and it’s pretty certain Zeppelin isn’t
touring these days…especially not in Corvallis. It can only be Corvallis’ own Zeppelin
tribute band, Stairway Denied.
These guys sound like the real thing. Though the band strongly emphasizes its
desire not to be a carbon copy of the magnificent original (no dressing like the band,
etc.), when vocalist Noah Stroup utters the first line of the night, the likeness gives
you chills. Guitarists Brian Hunter and Dylan Nelson mimic the immortalized riffs of
Jimmy Page to perfection. And rounding out the sound are bassist Dust Stallings of
Jahbong fame and drummer Chris Harver who bring their own incredible talents to
the mix.
Stroup had wanted to start a Zep cover band for eons when he met the rest of the
band through mutual friends. Three of the members (Stroup, Harver and Hunter) lived
together and began the long search for a bass player. Once Stallings was on board,
the only thing missing was that second guitar. Harver found him in a co-worker, and
the work of building the stairway was complete.
Though the group is still in its infancy, the band members are no strangers to the
bers keep perspective on the history of the
group and where they want to go with it,”
Johnson said.
Anyone can join — all you need is an
open mind, a desire to perform and an inter-
est in poetry, any poetry. While slam poetry
seems to be the preferred style of many of
the members, at Sunnyside Up on Sept. 28,
Black Poets big and small spoke, yelled and
whispered lines. In front of a packed room,
members read aloud as they shook with
rage, leaned in close to the audience or
stood, looking shy and frail, in front of the
microphone.
Members don’t have to perform if they
don’t want to, but making it to meetings is
important. Starting this year, new members
will also have to participate in diversity
awareness training. “One of the main pur-
poses of the group is to develop cross-cul-
His own writing stems from listening to
hip hop and he said the goals of the society
haven’t influenced his writing so much as
reinforced it. “It’s still writing and express-
ing opinion,” he said, “It’s just different in
meter and sound.”
The society hosts at least two events per
term at OSU, and members often read at
events held by others. “On campus we get
asked to do a lot of multi-cultural events,”
Dekker said. They’re also considering com-
peting in the next National Collegiate
Poetry Slam.
Off campus, members are often at ven-
ues that host open mic nights, poetry read-
ings or benefits such as the relief effort for
hurricane victims that happened at
Sunnyside Up in September.
Now is the best time to join if you’re in-
terested. “It feels like a renaissance we’re
riding right now,” Johnson said. “It feels
like a rise in membership and in community
support.” Contact the Black Poets by
e-mailing blackpoets@oregonstate.edu ■
music scene. Harver
and Stroup are also
members of a well-
established Corvallis
band, Maryspeak. In
fact, the only “band
virgin” of the group
is Nelson who, until
drawn in by the
power of Zep, was a
casual player.
Musical
influ-
ences range from AC/DC (y’know, the band on Butt-head’s shirt) to Huey Lewis (who
tried to convince the world that it’s “Hip to be Square”) to Nirvana. Harver notes that
due to a neighbor who was also a professional drummer, he listened to a lot of Carlos
Santana. On the other side of the spectrum, Hunter is into death metal, which hope-
fully rounds things out a bit.
In the seven months these boys have been together, not too many crazy things
have happened. Mostly rowdy, drunken crowds abound, but that’s not unusual any-
where in Corvallis. Harver does recall someone humping his leg as an expression of
musical appreciation…well, to each his own.
Create some crazy road stories for this incredibly talented group by catching their
very first Portland show Oct. 29th at the Ash Street Saloon. Take a listen at
www.stairwayDenied.com and keep an eye out – these boys are going places. Stairway
Denied play 10 pm Nov. 19 at Bombs Away Café $5.
WHAT’S HAPPENING Corvallis • 9