A dohraje ernej vinyl (2026)

This Czech-language poetry collection, subtitled The Second Angelic Book, brings together verses written between 2016 and 2023. Zdenk Lebls poetry stands out at first reading for its conversational, non-standard language, reminiscent of Josef Kainar, as well as for its ironic distance from the subjects it captures. Lebl adds his own distinctly sardonic view of everyday life, along with parody and irony, and does so throughout his books, including this new collection. Here, his free verse opens up to an unprecedented sense of freedom, particularly in the concluding long poem When the Black Vinyl Finishes, surely the largest and most ambitious poetic text he has written to date. Music is etched into vinyl grooves, a subject Lebl often refers to, while his conversational, lyrical verses sometimes come close to song lyrics. The collection explores the boundary between a poem and a sung text, a balance Lebl successfully maintains. The afterword is by Jan ulc.