Ever have trouble remembering things? Phone numbers? Grocery lists? Names of casual acquaintances? If so, get ready to feel very self-conscious, because on this week's WAKE, we meet the indomitable Neal Kosaly-Meyer, a musician who decided, entirely of his own volition, to spend seventeen years memorising and performing the entirety of Finnegans Wake. Seriously. Toby and TJ caught Neal as he prepared to take on the punishing 'Tales From the Inn' chapter (premiering December 2025!), where we discuss memorisation, how the Wake is like music that most people neglect to play, rhythm, and, of course, offer WAKE's first and definitive opinion on Kendrick Lamar at the Super Bowl. Don't forget: it's a new WAKE!
This week's chatters: Neal Kosaly-Meyer, Toby Malone, TJ Young
Contextual Notes
Neal Kosaly-Meyer on Waywords and Meansigns: https://www.waywordsandmeansigns.com/artists/neal-kosaly-meyer/
Neal on NPR: https://www.npr.org/2019/12/24/791045690/seattle-man-plans-to-memorize-and-perform-joyces-finnegans-wake
Neal on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nealkosaly/
The Stranger https://www.thestranger.com/theater/2019/12/04/42157754/the-seattle-man-who-is-memorizing-an-unreadable-novel
Neal in performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HumFP8dLffk
Gavan Kennedy, Finnegan Wakes: a Machine of Memory and Meaning https://journal.burningman.org/2018/08/black-rock-city/participate-in-brc/finnegan-wakes-a-machine-of-memory-and-meaning/
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