Puma Perl and Joe Sztabnik’s Under Tenement Skies is a masterstroke of raw emotion, storytelling, and sonic atmosphere. This spoken word blues album captures the gritty soul of urban life, blending Perl’s evocative poetry with Sztabnik’s hauntingly resonant musical compositions. Together, they create a vivid tapestry of love, loss, rebellion, and survival, set against the backdrop of a city that never stops moving.
Puma Perl’s delivery is magnetic, her voice simultaneously tender and defiant. She paints her poems with sharp-edged words and an intimate vulnerability that draws listeners into her world of tenement walls, neon reflections, and late-night revelations. Her cadence is perfectly matched by Joe Sztabnik’s bluesy guitar riffs, which shift effortlessly between mournful and hopeful, enhancing the emotional depth of each piece.
Tracks like “Where I’m From” and “And Something Better” encapsulate the album’s essence, weaving narratives that feel as personal as journal entries but as universal as the human condition. The synergy between the spoken word and the music is extraordinary, with each element amplifying the power of the other. Sztabnik’s blues foundation provides a steady heartbeat to Perl’s free-spirited, unfiltered poetic flow, creating an alchemy that feels both timeless and fresh.
What makes Under Tenement Skies especially compelling is its authenticity. It doesn’t try to sanitize or romanticize its subject matter; instead, it embraces the raw beauty and chaos of the city and its inhabitants. There’s a visceral honesty here, a sense of people and places that are alive with stories that demand to be heard.
Whether you’re a fan of spoken word, blues, or simply appreciate art that resonates on a deeply human level, Under Tenement Skies is an album that should not be missed. Puma Perl and Joe Sztabnik have created something rare — a work that feels as though it’s been pulled straight from the streets yet polished with undeniable craft and heart. It’s a gritty love letter to life’s complexities, set to a soundtrack as unforgettable as the poetry itself.
While a resident of New York City, Richard Modiano became active in the literary community connected to the Poetry Project where he came to know Gregory Corso, Allen Ginsberg, Anne Waldman, William S. Burroughs and Ted Berrigan. In 2001 he was a programmer at Beyond Baroque Literary/Arts Center, joined the Board of Trustees in 2006, and from 2010 to 2019, he served as Executive Director. The Huffington Post named him as one of 200 people doing the most to promote poetry in the United States. Modiano is the winner of the 2022 Joe Hill Prize for labor poetry and is a Pushcart Prize nominee.
Under Tenement Skies by Puma Perl and Joe Sztabnik is available for purchase at https://pumaperlandjoesztabnik.bandcamp.com/album/under-tenement-skies-2
