Hayes’s work is terrific...it’s grounded in narrative even as it’s linguistically dense and playful, with allusions to formal verse traditions and to pop culture new and old. There’s an appealing restlessness and reach and witty musicality...with meanings that can explode in a thousand directions in every line...I like to think of them as the A.D.D. poets...
more, here. even more, here. Hayes recently won the National Book Award for poetry. in this video,
the Carnegie Mellon professor explains why poetry, why Pittsburgh, and reads some of his poetry with jazz accompaniment.