In the darkly-lit coffeehouse scene of New York City, a small band of writers emerged from the late-night poetry slams and wide-eyed caffeine dreams. A few

of them appeared on one of the few things MTV ever got right, an "Unplugged" special featuring powerful spoken-word performances that brought to mind the heyday of

the Beats. One, with tangled black hair, feral eyes and rubbery biceps stepped to the microphone: Maggie Estep. Loudmouthed, foul, clever and brutally honest, she

backed her boyfriend-slagging poem with roughed-out rock 'n' roll...