"Far over the misty mountains cold,
to dungeons deep and caverns old.
We must away ere break of day,
to seek the pale, enchanted gold."
-- J.R.R. Tolkien, the Hobbit

Made it out to the Uptown Nightclub for the first time this week... then ended up there a second time for another dose of delightful depravity.

The Uptown Nightclub, for those that haven't been, is a fairly nice venue. When you first enter, you get a long view of the bar which is fairly well-stocked. Parallel to the bar, but with a wall between, is the "theater" which is as big as the barroom is, but just has a few tables mounted against the walls and mostly empty space for standing with a nice little stage at the end.

The bathrooms are clean and well-lit (this is a much rarer "plus" than one would like to think). The smoking area is enclosed and out back, with plenty of seating and space - and can easily hear what's going on in the theater area.

Most drinks are about as expensive as they are in SF-proper, which was a little bit of a disappointment - but not heart-breakingly so. Bottled water is about half price, though. So that's like a win, right?

The first show I went out for was Unwoman's CD release and Birthday party back on Wednesday, 9/19. She played most of her new album, with a couple of songs from previous albums to fill out her repertoire for the evening. I personally found her enchanting - her music was, of course, excellent (it was, in fact, the reason I was there to begin with) and it was more than a bit fascinating watching her use the looping pedal to turn herself into a one-Unwoman string quartet. But she was also very charming up on stage, flirting and bantering back and forth with her crowd, and more than a little bit lovely.

I suspect that I have something of a schoolboy crush on her at the moment. But I see no reason why I shouldn't, honestly.

The second show I went to was the final Cabaret Perilous! of 2012 on 9/22. An all-round enjoyable show, truly. With swing music by Mari Mac & the Monitors, magic by Mysterium, beautiful burlesque by Jay Siren's... well... Sirens, violated Disney tunes by Princess Creampie, and, last but not at all the least, a pair of numbers by the unreasonably beautiful Standfire Collective (with my personal favorite: Unsinkable Molly).

To give you an idea of how good Standfire is, I overheard (and am ruthlessly stealing... and probably misquoting a little, but the point is the same) someone's comment from last night: "It says something that, in a show that included beautiful women taking off their clothes, that the act that got the loudest cheers by far was the trio of women that didn't take anything off." I think Shutterpunk Neil Girling was the one that said this... so credit where credit is due.

If you haven't seen Unwoman perform or heard her music or you have not seen the Standfire Collective or Unsinkable Molly dance, these are oversights that you absolutely must work to rectify as soon as is humanly possible!

The truth is, if you are unwilling to repair these failings on your part, I must only assume that it is because you were dropped frequently as a child or that perhaps your mother drank an inordinate amount while you were in the womb - as such, you are beyond my help, but I can look askance at your sorry life in pity and thank the stars that I am not forced to live an empty life devoid of music or pleasure.

In other news:

We've got Amanda Palmer (accompanied by the above-mentioned Unwoman) coming to San Francisco on Wednesday 9/26; the Days of Terror Horrorfest in Sacramento on 9/28 and 9/29; Unit77's Allegiance in SF on 9/29; Steampunktoberfest and Steamstock on 10/6 and 10/7; and a whole mess of other shows, concerts, performances, and other madness.

Tremble in fear and joy, oh gothlings, for October and the Fall cometh! Keep checking the calendar and the event pages so that you don't miss anything awesome!!

-- Mr. M.

"No, nobody can own me.
This is my only authority.
My, my body is mine - to poison.
It is my gift for the killers to cut open."
-- Unwoman, "For the Killers"

Artist(s): Unwoman

Album: The Fires I Started

The recently released album by the Bay Area's own Unwoman, cellist and vocalist extraordinaire.

My Thoughts: A little dark cabaret, a little steampunk, a little political, a little electro, a little mythic, a little academic, a little war-torn, a little romantic, and a whole lot of wit, Unwoman (a.k.a. Erica Mulkey) can only be described as an entity of innumerable and far-reaching talents.

I actually regret to say that I only recently allowed myself to fall prey to her musical charms. To think of all the time I've clearly wasted!

For those who haven't heard Unwoman's music before... well, she's fairly difficult to pigeon-hole, to be honest (see above). Obviously, there's all that cello, sometimes with languid electro-synth tracks and other times with harsh heavy beats mixed in to add to the other-worldliness... Or perhaps "other-timeliness" is a better description. Meanwhile, her vocal stylings occasionally remind me of Miranda Sex Garden's Katharine Blake, but with less ethereal, fairy-tale subject matter and more heavy-breathed, film-noir allure.

Ultimately, this inability to pin her down is one of the things I like best about Unwoman's work so far. To call her fascinatingly anachronistic would be fitting - if only one could tell which direction and how far she has been displaced in time, so that we knew whether to mourn for a past forever lost or to yearn for a future we shall never see.

Highlights: The Fires I Started is a rich tapestry of aural delights. Picking out a few individual pieces on other albums is usually a good way to get a feel for the artist. But, in this case, each piece is a thing unto itself - highlighting one or another feels almost counterproductive, misrepresenting the immense range that is the complete album.

Of course, that is unacceptable; thus I shall endeavor to represent some of my particular favorites well and, hopefully, entice you, dear readers, as I have been enticed.

"The Future, the Boot" - Drawing its inspiration (and its chorus) from Orwell's infamous quote about the future involving "a boot stamping on a human face - forever", this jaunty tune plays with the idea of turning the other cheek and making beauty from horror in an attempt to subvert the assumed inevitability of such a future - "when life throws you sarin, you sing a sweet serenade", she trills wittily. Of course, even our singer seems to question whether this will really be all that effective in changing anything, asking "is there something bigger to believe in - to unite us under".

"The Heroine" - A poignant song of disappointment, it tells the tale of a war-time performer awaiting her beau/belle to appear at her underground performance in a locked-down city (I always imagine somewhere in WWII Nazi-occupied France in my own mind's eye, though the actual location is never said). The desired, though, never arrives, leaving our heartbroken performer to recognize that her beloved is either "a coward or could never love me or you have fallen to the enemy" - none of which, understandably, console her. All the other guests have appeared - but not her lover, who has, in one fashion or another, failed her.

"Siren Ship" - This piece, ostensibly about a defenseless treasure ship inviting pirates in order to entrap them, strikes me as a witty and pretty sea shanty. Of course, its elegant and cunning innuendos suggest a devious and extremely sensual (no, really, this song seriously turns me on) metaphor concerning a seductive and supposedly vulnerable beauty who lures her lovers to their emotional ruin. "Your type can never resist my call. I have been so many conquerors' downfall..."

"Star-Crossed" - This is one of the pieces where Unwoman's vocals seem most reminiscent of Katharine Blake. Elegant and slightly static-y, it has a fuzzy, unreal quality - as if playing from a dirty disc on an overused Victrola. I'm still not entirely sure what the song is about - or if it's about anything at all, really. But there's something about it's lilting, dream-like ambiance and soldierly drum-beat that really flows through the listener.

Final Thoughts: The Fires I Started is a mix of so many different elements that it defies any true classification and certainly anything resembling convention. A gem of independent music-making, it is atmospheric, alluring, and highly addicting (I suggest that Unwoman be forced to put warning labels on it).

If you don't believe me, go to Unwoman's website and listen to this or any of her other albums she has there for free. She also subscribes to the "pay what you want" model of music-vending, meaning that if you want to own some of her music and are a little strapped, she'll generally accept what you think is fair for most of her albums (and she doesn't skimp, either - other than the "singles", most of her albums seem to sit at a solid 15 or 16 songs).

I, of course, recommend throwing as much money at her as you can manage, either for one of her albums or during one of her crowd-funding endeavors.

I also recommend attending the CD-release party for the Fires I Started on Wednesday, Sept. 19th, 2012 (that's in two days, my darklings), so that you can see this siren perform in person. Details to be found HERE.

-- Mr. M.

"And I find it kind of funny.
I find it kind of sad.
The dreams in which I'm dying
are the best I've ever had."
-- Tears For Fears, "Mad World"

This post is going to be short and to the point. Just a heads up.

It may not be terribly surprising that, as an often-all-too-archetypal goth kid, I've spent a lot of time struggling with depression. For those of you that haven't had the dubious luxury of knowing me well enough to get the details, this has been especially true over the past year and a half (though the depression itself began much earlier than that).

For those fortunate enough not to know: depression saps your very will to live your own life. And, in particularly bad moments, it can cause you to choose to stop living entirely. Anyone that tells you to "buck up" or "get over it" has no idea how insidious, vicious, and debilitating depression is - how it undermines your faith in yourself, in everything you do, in the love that other people bear you, and even in your own worth as a human being.

So, it's more than a bit uplifting to see someone I hold in fairly high esteem, Mr. Wil Wheaton, come forward and admit to similar feelings and give his opinion on the topic. As the man says: "Depression Lies."

I'm not going to pretend that I'm anywhere near as relevant to the world-stage, or even to the Bay Area stage, as Mr. Wheaton is. And he really does say it more eloquently than I ever could - so you should just check out his post, as I'm not interested in further retreading the ground that he's covered so much better.

Also, you should consider supporting a friend of mine, Jasmine Boardman, who's been working so hard to put herself through school, specifically to combat this psychological dis-ease and one of the most unfortunate results common to it. She's attempting to complete her grad degree in Psychology and get certification specifically in suicide intervention and prevention. I know money is tight right now - but even $5 or $10 could help her go forth and save lives.

If it were not for her and her family, I am certain that I would not be here today. That may not matter much to some folks, but it matters a fuck of a lot to me.

(P.S. I also want to thank Ms. Tara D. for sharing Mr. Wheaton's post on FB so that I saw it.)

-- Mr. M.

"Because I could not stop for Death,
He kindly stopped for me;
The carriage held but just ourselves
And Immortality."
-- Emily Dickinson, "Because I Could Not Stop For Death"

So, as of this last Sunday (9/2/2012), Asylum, one of the longest running goth clubs in Northern California (nearly 19 years, I'm told - just shy of our beloved Death Guild), has ended its existence.

It was a lovely and grand going-out party, and I was pleased to see more than a few attendees from the San Francisco scene there. In fact, things got so full that they had to open part of the other half of the club just to make room for the flood of human bodies. One hell of a send off for the ol' girl, as they say.

Personally, I had an excellent time meeting some very awesome folks and dancing with some exceptional ladies (my thanks to Ms. Aly and particularly Ms. J.).

The big announcement that DJ Bryan Hawk promised?

That, yes, Asylum really is closing down for good. But that he would only be taking a few weeks off before opening a new club at a new venue -- all the details to be announced when things are squared and ready to go. This new club is going to be ages 18 and up, which is a huge plus (especially as Sacramento seems to have a disproportionate number of 18-20 year-old darklings compared to the San Francisco crowd). And they'll be having a fetish night once per month, and it also sounds like several other theme nights throughout the year. And, finally, it will be filling Asylum's old Sunday night slot in the Sacramento scene.

(I'll make sure to put the details of the new club up as soon as I have them!)

So, yes Asylum is, sadly, dead and gone. But she is not forgotten and, in a month or so (maybe less), there will be a new weekly club arising to take her place; bigger and bolder.

Furthermore, on the topic of Sacramento:

I want to extend my gratitude to the Sacramento goth crowd, especially those in the SacGoths group on FB (and extra especially Emory, Aly, RC, and Aaron). You are an excellent bunch of people, and I thank you for welcoming me so warmly among you these last few weeks. It's almost enough to thaw this frozen dead heart of mine right back into life. Almost. I can only say that I am sorry we met under the circumstances of Asylum's passing, and I wish that I had made it out to Sacramento more often in the past. But I suspect I'll be managing to get myself out that way significantly more in the future.

So, with that, my darklings, I bid you an unpleasant night and dark and dreary dreams.

-- Mr. M.