Brand New Ancients

By: Kae Tempest

Narrated by: Kae Tempest

Winner of the Ted Hughes Prize for innovation in poetry.

Kate Tempest is one of the most exciting and innovative performers to have emerged in spoken-word poetry in many years; her dramatic poem "Brand New Ancients" won the prestigious Ted Hughes Prize for innovation in poetry. Tempest's wholly unique blend of street poetry, rap, and storytelling - combined with the spellbinding delivery of an open-air revivalist - has won her legions of followers all over the UK. Her remarkable stage presence is wholly audible in this poem, a spoken story written to be told with live music.

"Brand New Ancients" is the tale of two families and their intertwining lives, set against the background of the city and braided with classical myth. Here, Tempest shows how the old myths still live on in our everyday acts of violence, bravery, sacrifice and love - and that our lives make tales no less dramatic and powerful than those of the old gods .

©2013 Kate Tempest (P)2014 Pan Macmillan Publishers Ltd

A whole new (he)art

Must must must listen. True. Piercing. Full. I hope this is the whole new future of heartfelt poetry.

Stunning, like a "namaste" to Alfred J. Prufrock

Delighted that by instinct, I bought both book and audio--everything lives in this poem, whether divine, spirit, or mundane. Slight differences from print crop up in performance, but these feel organic. The music behind Tempest's voice suited, but two-and-a-half minutes street noise up front felt a bit excessive, otherwise, the audio is brilliant and provoking.

An extraordinary experience

What made the experience of listening to Brand New Ancients the most enjoyable?

More -- much more -- than a reading or a narration, Kate Tempest has produced, along with her musicians, audio performance art of a kind unique in the annals of audible.

What other book might you compare Brand New Ancients to and why?

Is it rap? Is it chant? Is it a song? It is epic and so rightly musical and mythic. As the title suggests, this book is Homeric.

Which character – as performed by Kate Tempest – was your favorite?

We are meant to love Tommy and Glory . . . And I did.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It's been a long time since I have bothered to write a review at audible -- not that I haven't enjoyed most of the volumes in my library. But Brand New Ancients demanded I make my reaction public. It is the single best audio book I have ever heard.

They are beautiful

Kae's talent to connect with us (me) everysingle time I hear them speak a or read a line that they have written.

Amazing new talent

This girl has something to say and I feel so deeply moved and honored to have the privilege to listen. I will not see the world the same having listened -- that is true art; that is what makes us gods.

Amazing. Brilliant, Captivating.

What did you love best about Brand New Ancients?

Everything. Kate Tempest has amazing insight into what it is to be alive. For someone as young and as relatively new to poetry as she is, her work is second=to-none.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Absolutely.

Any additional comments?

I was introduced to Kate Tempest through her album "Everybody Down", which is an outstanding piece musical art. I listened to the album in it's entirety 3 or 4 times in a row and it is still on my playlist. Of you have every felt, lost, alone, confused, happy, in love, depressed, or any of the myriad other human emotions, I STRONGLY recommend both the album and this collection of her poetry.