The Poison Pie Publishing House presents:

July 1, 2025
Returning by land to Knossos, Djedi-Khnet discovered that King Minos was not to be found in the palace. In fact, he had left Crete entirely. When the Egyptian inquired of a functionary as to the nature of the endeavor that had drawn the king away, he was met with a supercilious glare. As for the expected date of return, he was told, "No one sets the king's schedule but himself. It could be a matter of months or a year or more." A room was set aside for Djedi-Khnet to await Minos' return. There he was left to contemplate his insignificance in the grand scheme of things.

written while listening to:  Circle Trio Meets Francesco Bearzatti - Circle (Picanto Records, PIC004, 2006, Italy, cd, discogs.com)

July 2, 2025
While it occurred to Djedi-Khnet to alert Melite to the unexpected delay in the plans to extricate her from the arena, this message was never sent. He knew not to what extent the king's whereabouts were viewed as state secrets. Nor did he know the propriety of corresponding with a prisoner. Moreover, his assignment was to identify a purpose for the behemoth, without regard for its keeper. Finally, he admitted that the Athenian woman wasn't going anywhere. That the environs in which she waited were not as luxurious as his own was a circumstance wholly beyond his control.

written while listening to:  Guillaume Gargaud & Lauri Hyvärinen - Jupiter In Pisces (Plus Timbre, PT154, 2023, Greece, digital files, discogs.com)

July 3, 2025
As for Melite, she was not oblivious to the growing count of weeks without word from Djedi-Khnet. You and I, Gentle Reader, can well guess the defense mechanism to which she had recourse. She forgave the Egyptian scholar for forgetting about her. She was only one girl and the spot of trouble in which she found herself could scarcely be regarded as life-threatening. She celebrated midsummer's eve with Theopompos and his mother. In honor of the solstice, the handler brought her an amphora of heady wine, which Theopompos insisted on sampling, though he did not find the vintage to his taste.

written while listening to:  Splitter Orchester - Splitter Musik, disc 2 (Hyperdelia, HEX 008, 2024, Germany, cdx3, discogs.com)

July 4, 2025
The exploits of King Minos have been etched in legendry. The fates of the bit players in his grand story—certainly Melite was at best no more than a footnote—have largely gone unrecorded. The milestones of Melite's life in the arena were measured exclusively in the development of Theopompos. At eight months, he was entirely weaned. At a year, he weighed more than eight hundred pounds. By two years, his prodigious appetite and the ample sustenance provided by the people of Lato had doubled that weight. No longer did Melite fear to perch upon his back.

written while listening to:  Derek Bailey, Amy Denio & Dennis Palmer - The Gospel Record (Shaking Ray Records, SRR-CD004, 2005, United States, cd, discogs.com)

July 5, 2025
In the palace at Knossos, Djedi-Khnet made the most of his residency. He preferred not to be idle, so engaged himself in several parallel endeavors. The first and most natural palace clique for him to embrace was that composed of the pre-eminent scholars. Djedi-Khnet had already met the in-house astronomer and soon introduced himself to a veritable flotilla of sages, including a royal historian, architect, augur, naturalist, geographer and two rival cabals, one of cloistered physicians, the other of adroit philosophers and mathematicians. He soaked in their knowledge of both erudite matters and court politics.

written while listening to:  Honnomajika~Naharu × Keiji Haino - untitled (Fulldesign Records, FDR-1052, 2025, Japan, cd, discogs.com)

July 6, 2025
Many learned men who traversed the corridors of the palace viewed the Egyptian with favor, for his blend of charisma and intelligence was too rare and potent a combination to ignore, save without conscious intent. Only the high priest made his disdain for Djedi-Khnet plainly known. The survival of the escapee from the labyrinth still rankled the old cleric. He perceived in the visit of the foreign scholar to the behemoths' lair tampering of a kind that he would not tolerate, unless at the explicit command of their sovereign lord.

written while listening to:  Joëlle Léandre, Lotte Anker & Kresten Osgood - Worlds (Fundacja Słuchaj!, FSR 28/2024, 2024, Poland, cd, discogs.com)

July 7, 2025
A second avenue for constructively whiling away the hours led to the company of a lower class of servants and aides milling about in the periphery of power. They possessed knowledge of a different kind, though equally valuable to Djedi-Khnet. Standing in attendance they overheard all manner of conversation. They understood the dynamic fluctuations of alliances and their gossip provided a communication network second to none. Though warier than their superiors, they too found the foreigner affable and felt an elevation of status in educating him on matters of palace intrigue.

written while listening to:  Susan Alcorn, Patrick Holmes & Ryan Sawyer - From Union Pool (Relative Pitch Records, RPR1160, 2023, United States, cd, discogs.com)

July 8, 2025
The ease with which the Egyptian navigated the conspiratorial coteries of the court filled the high priest with disgust. He privately warned the court astronomer to beware of his position for he claimed to have heard Djedi-Khnet boast of the superiority of his talents in their discipline. The astronomer saw this slander for what it was. Later that evening, he and Djedi-Khnet shared a good laugh about it over cups. When asked what he had done to earn the enmity of the priest, the visitor innocently shrugged and stored the information away.

written while listening to:  Tyshawn Sorey Trio - The Susceptible Now, sides A & B (Pi Recordings, PI104, 2024, United States, lpx2, discogs.com)

July 9, 2025
During King Minos' absence abroad, Djedi-Khnet did not entirely forget about Melite. When the discussion turned to affairs of the empire beyond Crete, whether it was the state of colonies or their foreign neighbors, the scholar sought to understand the role of exotic wildlife trade. He learned that Hittites revered stags, lions and snakes. Phoenicians prized nothing so much as their sea snails from which came the purple dye of Tyre, though they were said to be fond of the ivory of elephants. The Canaanites apparently eschewed animals beyond those domesticated—donkeys, cattle and sheep.

written while listening to:  Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth Ensemble - Vision Quest (Dreamtime Records, no catalog #, 2001, Untied States, cd, discogs.com)

July 10, 2025
Berbers valued their camels no less than Spartans did their Laconian dogs. Nor did he perceive any advantage in sending Melite to his native Egypt, where behemoths were simply a nuisance to be hunted once they threatened fields irrigated by the Nile. Djedi-Khnet continued to mull over the information he accumulated during this time, supposing that a solution would eventually coalesce. While his meals and lodging were provided, he earned a comfortable discretionary income painting elegant hieroglyphs on vases and urns in the homes of local nobles.

written while listening to:  Benjamin Duboc, Jeanne Benameur & Ensemble Icosikaihenagone - Oratorio (Dark Tree, DT 19, 2024, France, cd, discogs.com)

July 11, 2025
Eventually, King Minos returned to Knossos. He arrived without special fanfare. He did not decree that exploits of military conquest be promulgated among his subjects. Rather, the voyage was announced as a successful tour of the colonies, encompassing the islands of Thera and Rhodes as well as Miletus and Iasos on the coast of Anatolia. The routine show of naval force kept the maritime trade routes secure. The markets in the capitol were flooded with wares arriving in the many merchant ships, which had eagerly formed a fleet trailing the warships.

written while listening to:  Roscoe Mitchell - One Head Four People (Wide Hive Records, WH-0379, 2024, United States, cd, discogs.com)

July 12, 2025
Djedi-Khnet's request to meet with the king was put in a queue. After an absence of more than a year, there were many parties who judged their business pressing. In the opinion of the court scheduler, the fate of the behemoth, kept safely in an arena on the far side of the island, failed to rise to the top three tiers of priority access. Once Minos was back in the palace, the Egyptian grew less patient with waiting. He would have been incensed to know that the high priest meddled with the schedule, continually postponing his audience.

written while listening to:  Jemeel Moondoc - The Zookeeper's House (Relative Pitch Records, RPR1026, 2014, United States, cd, discogs.com)

July 13, 2025
Had the king not grown disgusted with the incessant flow of petty disputes brought before him by querulous plaintiffs, Djedi-Khnet's day at court may never have arrived. He had taken to hovering in the hallways when Minos was present in hopes of catching him as he moved between rooms. Indeed, his handsome face caught the king's eye and caused him to pause. Brushing aside an aide, he said, "I remember you, Egyptian," though he had apparently forgotten his name. "How fares my behemoth?" "I've exciting news to report," Djedi-Khnet promised.

written while listening to:  Yaron Herman - Radio Paradise (Naïve, BLV8789, 2025, France, cd, discogs.com)

July 14, 2025
That evening on a balcony beneath the stars, the king and the Egyptian settled the fate of the behemoth. Djedi-Khnet began by praising the young beast's health and size. He gradually expanded his description to its disposition, extolling the steadfast loyalty it demonstrated for the woman who stayed with it as its keeper. At the mention of Melite, King Minos remembered that he had left a fugitive from the labyrinth in the arena. "Is that girl still alive?" he asked in surprise. "Indeed," the scholar replied, "she appears to have a natural talent for the care of these beasts."

written while listening to:  Makoto Kawashima - Arteria (Relative Pitch Records, RPRSS042, 2025, United States, cd, discogs.com)

July 15, 2025
As the king listened to the Egyptian's tale of his visit to Lato and of the strange bond that had formed between woman and behemoth, he began to suspect that there was a motive behind the conspicuous absence of a declaration of any ultimate purpose for the beast. He smiled at the scholar, who paused in his cataloguing of the beast's qualities. "It's useless, isn't it?" interrupted the king. "My Lord, you are ever perceptive," said the scholar. "I agree that there is limited opportunity to exploit the full worth of the beast if it remains on Crete."

written while listening to:  John Finlayson - 3 Times Round (Pi Recordings, PI77, 2018, United States, cd, discogs.com)

July 16, 2025
"While I toured Anatolia," said the king, "I heard it claimed that in lands east of Babylonia, rulers count mighty elephants among the ranks of their armies. Have you ever seen an elephant?" Djedi-Khnet admitted that he had not encountered one alive, but had seen a skull with gargantuan tusks once in Memphis. "If my behemoth is indeed as well-trained as you have said, what do you think of the idea of enlisting it in my army?" The scholar praised the originality of the king's suggestion for he had never heard of behemoths employed in this manner.

written while listening to:  Nico Chkifi - Motian Love Dance (Ramble Records, RAM-183CD, 2024, Australia, cd, discogs.com)

July 17, 2025
Again the king listened to Djedi-Khnet wax eloquently on the possibility of a mighty behemoth charging through the regimented ranks of infantry, laying waste to an enemy's soldiers. As before, the king shrewdly perceived the indirect meaning of these words. Minos smiled once more, "I like you." The Egyptian nodded in gratitude. "You convey your meaning sideways. If no general has ever enlisted a behemoth in his military, it is indeed a reliable indicator that the beast is not suited to army life. So what should I do with the damn thing?"

written while listening to:  Archie Shepp - California Meeting: Live "On Broadway" (Soul Note, SN 1122, 1987, Italy, lp, discogs.com)

July 18, 2025
Djedi-Khnet chose his words carefully. "There can be no doubt that upon obtaining the behemoth you brought pride to your people, for the creature is exceedingly rare outside its native lands, and its prodigious size is indeed impressive. As a symbol of status it succeeds as a demonstration that nothing is beyond your power to possess and control." The scholar took a deep breath. "How much greater would a monarch appear whose wealth and prestige is so profound that he simply gives this living treasure away as a sign of magnanimous generosity?"

written while listening to:  Chet Baker - Broken Wing (Inner City Records, IC 1120, 1981, United States, lp, discogs.com)

July 19, 2025
A guffaw escaped Minos. "Exactly!" he shouted. "I'll foist that useless beast on some other fool of a king! I know just the royal buffoon to take it." On that night, the king did not share the identity of the recipient of his largesse. Instead, he spent the rest of the evening in high spirits. He had bread and figs brought to dip in fresh honey as he plied Djedi-Khnet with fine wine imported from Massalia. They drank to excess and both had to be escorted back to their bedrooms by aides.

written while listening to:  Hank Mobley - Roll Call (Blue Note, BLP 4058, 1961, United States, lp, discogs.com)

July 20, 2025
Minos conveyed his intention to have the behemoth transported off island. Preparations were immediately begun to equip a galley with a reinforced pen to hold the beast, the ship that had brought the original pair to Crete having been earlier dispatched to Carthage and not due to return for months. After an initial shock over their king abruptly resolving to give up his precious pet, the news did indeed strike the assembled nobility in the manner predicted by Djedi-Khnet, as an act only one man in the world possessed the wealth to commit.

written while listening to:  John Zorn - Filmworks VII (Tzadik, TZ 7315, 1997 (orig. 1989), United States, cd, discogs.com)

July 21, 2025
The announcement pleased the high priest more than any other. Recalling the death of one behemoth in transit to Crete, he suggested to the king that, in the interests of ensuring the survival of his gift, he should have its present keeper accompany the beast to its destination. In this endeavor, he unintentionally carried out the wishes of Djedi-Khnet, who had sought not only to please the king but to free Melite from the arena. Of course, the details of her forthcoming situation remained unknown but such was always the nature of life.

written while listening to:  Rob Mazurek & Exploding Star Orchestra - Galactic Parables: Volume 1, disc 1 (Cuneiform Records/Infinity Dogs, Rune 409/410/ ID 8467/8468, 2015, United States, cdx2, discogs.com)

July 22, 2025
Unbeknownst to the Egyptian, the high priest decided to kill two birds with one stone. He therefore insinuated to the king a small probability that the unusual gift would not be received as intended but rather rejected out of hand. "Preposterous!" barked Minos, "Who would dare?" In any case, the presence of an ambassador with a silver tongue could work wonders to secure a smooth reception. "How much better would it be if your representative in this matter chanced to hail from the same distant land as the beast?" asked the priest idly.

written while listening to:  Mimir - Mimyriad (Streamline, 1001, 1999 (orig. 1993), United States, lp, discogs.com)

July 23, 2025
By the time the news that he would accompany the beast on its exodus from Crete reached Djedi-Khnet, the matter was already settled. He accepted the assignment with his typical equanimity. The road of an itinerant scholar took unpredictable turns. There were far worse fates than being sent from one king to another bearing a gift. He made it his mission to discover the destination of the behemoth, on the legitimate pretext that knowledge of the intended recipient was necessary for him to best carry out the task.

written while listening to:  Charlie Parker - Bird's Eyes: Last Unissued, Vol. 7 (Philology, W 57-2, 1993 (orig. 1947, 1949, 1950 & 1951), Italy, cd, discogs.com)

July 24, 2025
Minos desired above all to extend the reach of his trade routes, for commerce brought wealth and wealth power. Certainly the strength of the Minoan empire lay in its navy but the king yearned to reach beyond the coastal ports into the interior lands. In particular, he sought to establish his own contact with merchants from the far east, whose goods currently passed through Tyre. The Phoenicians claimed great profit in the distribution of such wares through-out the Great Sea. Successfully breaking their monopoly would yield vast and enduring rewards.

written while listening to:  Duke Ellington - The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse (Fantasy, F-9498, 1975, United States, cd, discogs.com)

July 25, 2025
Many peoples dwelt beyond the strip of coastline claimed by the Phoenicians. To the northeast, the mighty Assyrian empire was ruled by Adad-nirari III in his capital, Nineveh, on the Tigris. Well east of Tyre lay the lands of Babylonia, where a puppet king under the dominion of the Assyrians, Ninurta-apla-X, reigned from Babylon on the Euphrates. Due south of Tyre were the lands of the Jews, splintered into small kingdoms and city states. The Cretan reconnaissance of the rulers of the Israelites was too sketchy to be of any practical use.

written while listening to:  Sylvie Courvoisier - Chimaera, disc 2 (Intakt Records, INTAKT CD 410, 2023, Switzerland, cdx2, discogs.com)

July 26, 2025
Among the Greeks, anti-Assyrian sentiment grew from fear based on vague rumors of their military might. Minos reasoned that his chances for securing a favorable trading foothold were better nurtured with a lesser nation. When Djedi-Khnet learned that he was to accompany the beast to fabled Babylon, he was of two minds. It seemed a fantasy with uncertain prospects of success. Yet the opportunity appealed to him as an adventure beyond all dreams, one that could only be accomplished under the auspices of a power as great as the Minoan Empire.

written while listening to:  Adena Quartet - untitled (Doubtmusic, dmf-176, 2024, Japan, cd, discogs.com)

July 27, 2025
Three ships were outfitted for the initial leg of the expedition, the first housing the behemoth, the second hauling supplies for the landward stage of the journey and the third bearing porters to carry the provisions. While final preparations were underway, Djedi-Khnet took the wagon around the coast to Lato. He intended to alert the handler (and by extension Melite herself) to the impending departure. As the reunion drew closer, he felt a mixture of anticipation at seeing the woman and foreboding at the recriminations, which she would likely heap upon him for the prolonged delay.

written while listening to:  Frank Schultz - Solo at Red Light (self-released, no catalog #, 2022, United States, digital files, discogs.com)

July 28, 2025
A clear sky graced the morning when Djedi-Khnet returned to the arena. He brought a pink and white bouquet of oleander and caper blooms by way of an understated apology for his extreme tardiness. Melite recognized him immediately at the side of the handler, for she had received no other visitors since his departure. She accompanied the two behemoths to the pavilion. He remained on the wagon, kneeling to hand the gift to her. She smiled kindly, saying nothing of his absence, but offered the flowers to Theopompos who devoured them in one bite.

written while listening to:  Air - Air Time (Nessa Records, N-12, 1978, United States, lp, discogs.com)

July 29, 2025
"Are you packed?" Djedi-Khnet asked nonchalantly, as if he had only been gone a day or two. Melite spun in a slow circle, her gaze passing over the green field of the arena, as if checking one last time to make sure that she hadn't forgotten anything. "Oh, yes," she said, "I've got everything." Of course, she owned nothing but the gown, now very worn, and her equally frayed sandals. The handler observed this absurd exchange between the pair. He supposed that the carefree pretense was their way to make the best of an awkward spot.

written while listening to:  Vladimir Ussachevsky - Electronic And Acoustic Works 1957-1972 (Composers Recordings Inc., CD 813, 1999 (rec. 1957-1972), United States, cd, discogs.com)

July 30, 2025
"Where are we headed, dare I ask?" said Melite to Djedi-Khnet. "You, my lady, are destined to tour the most exotic locale known to man, a city of erudition, mystery and passion." With a flourish, he announced, "Babylon." No obvious emotion crossed Melite's face. She had heard the name before but only as a surrogate for any unreachably distant land. She had no specific knowledge of it nor had she ever met a Babylonian, kind or cruel, from whom she could base an opinion of the city. Still, she was not entirely immune to the scholar's enthusiasm, exaggerated though it was for her benefit.

written while listening to:  Harold Budd, Elizabeth Fraser, Robin Guthrie & Simon Raymonde - The Moon and the Melodies (4AD, CAD 611, 1986, United Kingdom, lp, discogs.com)

July 31, 2025
Back in Lato, Djedi-Khnet immediately visited a seamstress. It would not do for an emissary of the king, for such Melite now was, to wear the threadbare garment of a prisoner. He ordered a linen chiton and matching cloak. From the cobbler he purchased new sandals. At the jeweler's shop, he chose hairpins of silver to hold her over-long hair. He perversely selected two matching bracelets, engraved and set with garnets of pink and pale green. The bands were wide like polished manacles and bore the insignia of a bull, a physical reminder that ever was she bound to Minos.

written while listening to:  Keith Rowe - City Music for Electric Guitar (Table of the Elements, B 5, 1993, United States, 7", discogs.com), Davey Williams - Firing Up the Old Sikorsky/Requiem for Bosnia (Table of the Elements, C 6, 1993, United States, 7", discogs.com) & Jim O'Rourke - Muni/Michel Piccoli (Table of the Elements, N 7, 1993, United States, 7", discogs.com)