It’s tough coming up with poll ideas that will actually get people interested enough to vote. Can I get a little help here? Email your suggestions to reviews@burnsidewriterscollective.com. We had plenty of responses to the 50 States poll, though. I regret to inform you California has been crowned...

As I walk through my kitchen I can sense he’s staring at me. His name is Alfan. He’s five years old. I choose to ignore him as I move through the routine of my life. As I return to the kitchen and approach the refrigerator I quickly glance to see if he’s still there. He is, and he’s...

I pick up trash now. I didn’t use to, but I do now. At my house, at work, in airports, on sidewalks, in streets, in bathrooms. In all these places, I find little bits of refuse that sit idly by, wearily eyeing each passerby much like a cautious puppy in a dog pound. Tinged with fear, but also...

Everyone, So, I messed something up last week…something to do with the server, and David Allen worked his butt off (with the invaluable help of Coach Culbertson over at Relief Journal) to get the site back up again. Because of the fiasco, we’re offering a limited issue and saving some of...

Some musicians write songs; The Hold Steady speak in albums. Delving into the innocuous world of relationships, Boys and Girls in America punctuates its theme by repeating the album’s namesake throughout the record. More radio-friendly than its predecessors, it is the band’s first album on...

“Politics in a literary work are a pistol-shot in the middle of a concert, a crude affair though one impossible to ignore. We are about to speak of very ugly matters.” Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk uses these lines, from Stendhal’s The Charterhouse of Parma (1839), to warn his readers:...

(UPDATE: In November, 2007, one year after this article was posted, Burnside was contacted by a man claiming he performed this song. We conducted an interview. And now you know, the rest of the story.) I’ve been waiting much of the year for this. It’s the day after Halloween, the day when...

The Decemberists are sort of the Burnside Writer’s Collective’s ultimate band: lyrically literary, rich sound, and based in Portland. Yes, we like The Decemberists a whole lot. What’s better, they’re no slouches when it comes to producing music. The Crane Wife is their fourth...

It was about 2:00 in the afternoon when Jake raised his hand, right in the middle of my explanation of the spelling assignment. I was trying desperately hard to make my 10 year olds understand the difference between the long “u” sound and the long “oo” sound. I had even demonstrated...

Burnside Introduces is a new feature here on the site, wherein we will introduce you to one of our favorite bands, and review a tracklist of the songs we think you should check out. It’s a little different from Burnside Mixes…we’re only focusing on one band at a time. For our first...