Poet's work about French composer influenced by own persona

One look at Jeff Alessandrelli's recently published book of poetry is enough to evidence its unconventionality. A silhouetted man in an umbrella-laden bowler hat wears a pair of Lennon-esque spectacles with opaque yellow lenses. The title, "Erik Satie Watusies His Way Into Sound," also provides an appropriate amount of whimsy for a collection praised for its raw and clever composition, and which Mathias Svalina deemed "a stunning & challenging book about what it means to love stunning & challenging music."

"I was attempting to put myself in the place/frame of mind of the book's namesake, Erik Satie," Alessandrelli explained. "Satie was a 20th century French avant-garde composer and a really weird dude. He was one of John Cage's favorite composers, invented "furniture music" (nowadays we would call it ambient music) and was also known for his composition "Vexations" that, complete with its 840 repetitions, was known to take 18-plus hours to play."

While Alessandrelli's writing incorporates musical notation and repetition of titles and phrases in order to mirror Satie's style, he says it isn't necessary for the reader to have this background.

"In most of the poems, Satie is more of a character rather than a historical figure," he says. "I use quotes by him a lot but I also make things up and play around with the nature of Satie's, and my own, persona. So hopefully it's a varied experience, one that doesn't require a whole lot of prior knowledge about Satie."

In addition to writing poetry, Alessandrelli co-curates the Clean Part Reading Series with University of Nebraska-Lincoln Ph.D. student Trey Moody. The series has brought notable poets like Arda Collins, J. Michael Martinez and G.C. Waldrep to Lincoln.

"He puts a lot of energy into working on and promoting the Clean Part Reading Series so that the community here in Lincoln can hear innovative poetry from non-local poets," Moody said. "Jeff is a great poet who always seems to be working on new, exciting projects. Thankfully, his books and journal publications have been gaining much-deserved attention from the poetry world in the last couple of years."

Alessandrelli's upcoming poetry chapbook, "Don't Let Me Forget To Feed the Sharks," will be published this spring by Poor Claudia Press, though he says experience with the publication process hasn't changed his approach to writing.

"Being published is rewarding in many ways," he said. "But it's actually writing that, for me at least, is just as rewarding. I try not to see the forest for the trees."

Alessandrelli was more enthused by the experience of reading his work in public.

"I actually just got home from doing readings for "Erik Satie Watusies His Way Into Sound" in Georgia," he said. "It's fun to yell your work at strangers who in many instances have never heard or read it before. I get into it."

Public performance is fitting, given the musical influence and style of his new book. In fact, Alessandrelli says a wide variety of musical inspirations make up his writing. He cited the Notorious B.I.G., Carrie Brownstein, David Bowie, Nina Simone and Pete Doherty among his influences.

"On a day to day basis I'm inspired by my dog Beckett Long Snout, by my recently purchased ‘It's Potent!' Benefit Eye Cream, by the Science Times section of The New York Times and by sleeping in," he said. "I don't much believe in concepts like voice, since I think my "voice," however it might be defined, is really nothing more than an amalgamation of the many, many other voices - both written and spoken - I've encountered since I was a kid."

Joshua Ware, a fellow poet and friend of Alessandrelli who he met in UNL's Ph.D. program, gave positive sentiments and further insight into his Alessandrelli's personality.

"Jeff Alessandrelli has neatly stacked piles throughout his house, which indicates both compulsive behavior and meticulous attention to detail," Ware said. "Jeff Alessandrelli has the rugged but casual good looks of Hollywood actor Tom Jane."