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Leonard Cohen in 1967.
Jack Robinson/Getty ImagesLeonard Cohen’s early, never-before-published fiction will be collected in a new book, A Ballet of Lepers: A Novel and Stories, set to arrive Oct. 11 via Grove Press.
The book includes several pieces of short fiction, a radio play, and the titular novel, A Grove of Lepers. Cohen wrote everything in the book between 1956 — when he was still living in Montreal — and 1961, when he’d moved to Hydra island in Greece. A Ballet of Lepers: A Novel and Stories was edited by Cohen scholar Alexandra Pleshoyano, who also provided an afterword for the book.
No plot details about any of the pieces were revealed, but per a press release Cohen himself thought A Grove of Leper was “probably a better novel” than his celebrated 1963 book, The Favorite Game. Grove Atlantic deputy publisher, Peter Blackstock, said in a statement that the novel has “a Kerouacian intensity and darkly atmospheric setting.”
A Ballet of Lepers: A Novel and Stories was pulled from Cohen’s massive archive of unpublished material. As Robert Kory, Trustee of the Leonard Cohen Family Trust, noted: “Leonard said before his death that his life’s true masterwork was his archive, which he kept meticulously for the benefit of fans and scholars one day to discover. I’m pleased that, with this book, his readers and listeners can begin that rich journey.”
A Ballet of Lepers: A Novel and Stories is the second posthumous Cohen book published since his death in 2016, following The Flame — a collection of poetry, notebook excerpts, lyrics, and drawings — which arrived in 2018. The following year, Thanks for the Dance, a posthumous album featuring music Cohen recorded before his death, was released.
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There is no question that Clipse’s Let God Sort Em Out made a serious impact and continues to hold weight. The project showed that hip hop is not limited by age and proved that a long-awaited return can still land in a major way regardless of the time away.
If you need a reminder, the Virginia duo’s fourth studio album debuted comfortably within the top five of the Hot 200. It secured the number four position and moved an impressive 118,000 units in its first week.
On top of that, it picked up a win at this year’s Grammys, earning Best Rap Performance for “Chains & Whips.” The album also received four additional nominations, including Best Music Video, Rap Album, and Album of the Year.
It is hard to believe the project will officially hit its one year mark this summer on July 11. Even so, Pusha T is making it clear that both supporters and critics should not be overlooking it anytime soon.
While performing at Coachella yesterday, King Push told the crowd that LGSEO still sits at the top, regardless of genre.
He said, “‘Let God Sort Em Out’ is still the album of the motherfckin year. Whole new year, still album of the year,” per Kurrco. “Album of the motherfcking year until we drop again. We don't care who dropping. It don't matter.”
That is a strong statement for obvious reasons, especially considering the recent claims surrounding Push himself.
Over the same weekend, hip hop social media lit up after several alleged reference tracks connected to Quentin Miller and Push began circulating. Three tracks surfaced in total, but one that drew the most attention was an alleged record titled “Real Gon’ Come.” It is said to come from the DAYTONA era, around 2017 to 2018.
The situation gained traction because fans remember the past tension between Drake and Pusha T before Drake’s clash with Kendrick Lamar. During that feud, Pusha accused Drake of using ghostwriters on tracks like “Infrared,” which appears on DAYTONA. On that song, he raps, “The bigger question is how the Russians did it /
It was written like Nas, but it came from Quentin.”
Reactions have been mixed. Some people argue it is not a major issue since Miller’s alleged contributions were limited to hooks. Others point out that the songs were never officially released, so they see no real problem. Meanwhile, critics view it as clear hypocrisy on Pusha T’s part, a perspective that DJ Akademiks has also supported.
