About Maestro Andrew Levine
By Professor Joseph Coco
Andrew playfully scratches the surface of the human condition. His poems border a DADA dreamland. He reigns his reader back from untethered netherworlds to somehow make sense of humanities’ foibles. His aesthetic is deeply rooted in compassion. I never, ever, feel abandoned in the delirium into which his creativity often takes me. My imagination is always reset, refreshed, and enlivened, to find dignity in human absurdity. This is a rare skill.
Levine would never call himself a professional visual artist but I’d compare his imaginative cover drawings to that of Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516).
His drawings reveal an honesty about mankind’s often deformed sense of self. This can be seen in several of his self-illustrated book covers. (Collected Early Works, The Shaman’s Beauty Contest, Moltings, Lullaby, etc.)
Even when his fantastical depictions about humanity appear to be pessimistic, dark, and nightmarish, he never loses sight of innocence. His common denominator often defaults to humor. His landscapes, portraits, & plots, might appear twisted, yet the magician in him is a divining rod that straightens the maligned
Andrew Levine releases his latest poetry volume, ERGOT BEER
This is Mr. Levine’s 17th volume since COLLECTED EARLY POEMS was issued in 2007. His original voice energizes his poems with an uncanny satirical wit and sardonic quips. Andrew observes people as if he has a license to read their minds. He creates surrealist scenarios tethered to riveting realism. He navigates the world of duality; each page is a poetic map. Andrew always takes me on adventures of insight.
ERGOT BEER receives its title from Ergot, a fungus from the genus Claviceps that affects cereal grains. Ergot alkaloids in affected grain are toxic. Beverages made from infected grains can induce altered states, heightened perceptions, and agitation. As a consultant in the herbal manufacturing field today, Andrew’s knowledge of plant function and composition is what I see throughout his writing: poetic alchemy.
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The Jug Brown Books
Andrew co-authored, with Rik Huhtanen, The Jug Brown Books. Each book illustrates human eccentricity. It is my hope that a film producer steps forward to make a movie of any one of these books. The ‘outsider’ theme forms a large, clear fingerprint throughout their novels. Jug Brown leads readers into unfamiliar worlds inhabited by the archetypal ‘outsider’ in each of us. Shadows shape their film noir themes. Disenfranchised persons populate their landscapes. Together, Levine & Huhtanen’s talents brought me face-to-face with the nagging feeling that no matter what bizarre plots and deviant persons they describe, these characters are a mirror for what is unsettling in the world, particularly in American culture. Look for their latest Jug Brown Book, Tropospherence, it’s coming soon!
“Jug Brown Books invite shadows to be drawn toward a light through revelatory writing that is full of insights. These books stand as strange fruit to be tasted and shared. Jug Brown Books are a rare treasure!” — J.Coco
Cover: Ben Perkins * N. Dakota State Univ. Agriculture website: http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/pl McMullen, M. & Stoltenow, C PP-551 (revised) 5/ 2002
Mr. Levine was the owner/operator of Yellow Emperor Inc, a liquid herbal extract manufacturing plant that provided finished products and custom formulation services. He continues his work as an herbal product consultant/developer at Flying Game, LLC. A man of many talents, Andrew is enjoying life in beautiful Portland, Oregon, practicing tai chi and playing saxophone.
For more info on his herbal consultancy: Andrew Levine, FlyingGame.com