Published 2011. Paperback, 88pp, 8.5x5.5ins
ISBN 978-1-84861-310-2 [Download a PDF sampler from this book here.]

These five sequences of linguistically-driven word patterns, draw on the visual and written work of named photographers to explore ideas of seeing, language and being. Each line sits on an another line, subtly asserting its right to be there as a thing in itself, yet also asking the reader why these phrases are placed where they are and just how they all link together. The relentless rhythmic noise of these poems—perhaps the equivalent of heavy metal—can detract from this process, whilst the coherence of form only emphasises the differences contained in this disturbing and elliptical work; but those who persevere will find a rewarding and original poetry, full of experiential moments as well as diverse music and perceptive thought. These are ballads for the 21st century — tough, fragmented and unsure of themselves, yet given to insight and swagger.

"A wild roller-coaster ride through fractured language into an uncertain future." — Handshake

"There is a craft and style to Loydell's work which appeals to the orderly side of my brain. I like the way his mind plays with words and images… Again and again he uses the unexpected to illumine and define. What Loydell has produced is a balanced and beautifully stylistic display of great talent." — Black Mountain Review

"…striking comments on our disturbed early twenty-first century solipsism, and sometimes a scary echoing emptiness" — Poetry Review "

Rupert Loydell's world is strangely beautiful, or beautifully strange, but it's also strangely familiar. …there is always the sense of the intangible behind his words. What I like about Loydell's work is his commitment to a kind of truth, not to experience so much as to language." — Magma

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