Béton Brut

Spectral lines all ranked up

On the cosmic bathroom countertop

Bloodshot eyes in a cracked mirror

In the silence of a throbbing city club and the void

When I couldn’t see the stars

I stopped dreaming of space

Always keep the beaten path

Always keep a straight face

This year’s galvanised me

But zinc’s a drab-as limbo as any

Trading one grey for another

The music of the spheres spun

In colours I had never dreamed of

I would be lustrous, I’d be rusting in lust

I would be wretched. I would be loved

Leaving home

Muscles knot my aching shoulder bones

Wash out my veins with the acetone

I wasn’t born in fear

There’s no self-loathing in my genes

But from when I could hear

I heard the hereditary; the poison of misogyny

An amateur wavering, thrust traversing

The tripwire of masculinity

Dance, hummingbird! Can you dance?

I had learned the steps before I could walk

I had learned silence before I could talk

Where are you, Orion?

Into what abyss goes your hunt?

To black depths I condemn ye

And raise up to the heavens new stars

Stare into that void all you like

It won’t meet your gaze

When you can’t see the stars

You stop dreaming of space