Fall Through

This paean to 1990s DIY punk from National Book Award winner Powell (the March series) puts a paranormal twist on the intimacies and aggravations of life in a band. Arkansas-based quartet Diamond Mine summon thunderous power from their vocalist Diana’s volatile, shamanistic performances. The shows are electrifying—their sound drawn as lightning bolts striking the stage—but there’s something more at play. Each time the band launch into their signature song, “Fall Through,” it’s as though a rift opens in the spacetime continuum, and bassist Jody narrates a quasi-mystical tour diary of the group’s seemingly endless six-week van tour. While Diane fights to hold the band together, guitarist Napoleon feels pulled by responsibilities to a brother with special needs back home, drummer Steff powers through suppressed identity issues, and Jody’s attention strays to a budding relationship. A musician himself, Powell captures the warmth and squalor of punk house lodgings and the frenetic buzz at each stop along the road, all in vibrant, splashy layouts. “The story of a thousand shows is one of quietly falling out of time... Here we go again.” With infectious nostalgia for humid basement shows and 3:00 am revelations, Powell revels in the too-brief moments when music makes life vivid. Agent: Charlie Olson, InkWell Management. (Feb.)