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The King is dead! Long live the King!

9/5/2012

"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.

And in other news...

8/25/2012

"The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it... I can resist everything but temptation."
-- Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray

Busy! Busy! Busy!

(That's my pretend excuse for this latest bout of blog silence.)

Last night was spent waltzing my weasely little black guts out with the likes of the exceptional Alexis Berger, under the careful ministrations of DJ goddess Persephone and amazing guest DJ Joan Walton. A delightful evening, across the board, and useful practice as we get closer to PEERS' le Bal des Vampires.

Speaking of le Bal des Vampires, I purchased my ticket this week. As I've mentioned elsewhere, ticket prices go up on September 1st and are likely to run out as we get closer to the date (November 3rd, for those who don't know), so I cannot recommend strongly enough the purchasing of your tickets ASAP. Having gone last year, I know that this ball is extremely awesome. With the Nightfall Club downstairs, spinning Goth-y and New Wave tracks for those who like their vampires a little more like Lost Boys and the Hunger, and an amazingly large ballroom upstairs for those that prefer the grace and charm of a lost age. Go to the One-Time Events page for a link and more details!

In more scene info: last week I got a chance to hit the opening night of the Witching Hour out at the Cat Club. Going forward, it will be filling the 3rd Friday slot left open at the Cat with the departure of Dancing Ghosts. The latest brainchild of DJs Melting Girl, Daniel Skellington, and Sage, the Witching Hour sets out to embrace a two-fold goal:

1) Fade to Grey: playing older club favorites that don't really get much time in many other venues anymore; and
2) The New Black: exposing club-goers to new dark music that isn't exactly getting much play elsewhere and doesn't always fit exactly into the expected for a goth and/or industrial club.

I'm going to admit that I do somewhat agree with some of the criticism I've heard leveled concerning the former goal - nothing really stops the DJs (especially these DJs, who have a standing in the scene community that grants them a great deal of freedom, dare I say immunity, in their music choices) from playing some of these older "lost" hits at the other clubs that they're part of (specifically Death Guild and Dark Shadows). That said, it was nice hearing and dancing to some music that I haven't heard on the turntables in a while.

Regardless of all of that, though, I find the latter goal highly laudable. As much as I like to hear songs I know and love, it is a refreshing change of pace to hear something totally new (to me, anyway). I like getting some exposure to the direction that "goth" (that fuzzy word that many of us define in so many different ways) may be heading in the future... And even if it isn't, my tastes are wide enough that I can appreciate some of the truly amazing directions these acts are exploring. So, bravo for the so-called "New Black".

In further news: the week before that I was able to get out to the return of the Cell, that salon of dark dance and performance art.

The dark, ritualistic dance performance by Vulgaire (whom I'd never had the privilege of seeing before) and the light-hearted technical elegance of Shondell (whom I have seen and enjoyed in the past) was certainly what I'd come to expect of the Cell based upon previous experiences. Nor was I disappointed in the least.

Artistic performances by experimental cellist Angela Roberts, spine-chilling contortionist Michael Curran, and the sensual ululations and ritual chanting of Irretitus Fesol were stunning, disturbing, intense, and, in one case, more than a bit erotic. And, in this regard, this was the Cell truly embodying its highest form - that of a venue for performance art of a nature strange and sensual, deviant and delightful, haunting and perhaps a bit horrifying.

This is where we get to what some might consider to be "bad news" - due to the nature of its content, the Cell is choosing to become an invitation-only salon for the time being. Word is that invitees will be able to bring a single guest and that only by being brought a few times will said guest become a potential invitee to future Cell events.

In some ways this concerns me, for fear that this mostly-closed circle may result in the Cell losing a portion of its audience (some of whom are just "friends and family" of the performers). In others, though, I agree with Madame Anaid's reasoning and decision - as I suggested above, this last installment really waded into some fairly intense territory that may not really be palatable to those unused to or unprepared for the types of performance that the Cell seeks to make available. Also, the comfort of the performers is absolutely paramount and, in many ways, this is as much for them as it is for unintended audience members.

Ultimately, I applaud Madame Anaid's daring, extend my support, and hope for the best.

That said, I will be removing information about the locations and times of installments of the Cell. This will not preclude me from mentioning the artists or even offering my experiences on this blog, of course, but really, that can only wet the tongue to see that actual performances in person (at least, that is, if I'm doing my job correctly).

If you are interested in attending future Cell performances, I recommend finding an acquaintance among the invitees who is willing to initiate you into this lovely mystery cult that seems to be in the making.

For something in that actual "bad news" category: it sounds like Sacramento's Asylum, one of the longest running goth clubs in the area (running nearly as long as Death Guild), may be closing up shop within a few weeks. There hasn't been an actual "official" confirmation yet (supposedly that's set for this Sunday), but DJ Bryan Hawk and a few people "in the know" have made statements suggesting that this is definitely the case - at least at its current venue.

As we've seen, the club scene for us goth and industrial kids is often fluctuating and shifting as time goes on. Many good clubs and bad have vanished even in the short nearly-year-and-a-half that SFGothic has been around, and others have come into existence to replace them (and some have even been reborn).

But Asylum was Sacramento's "Death Guild". It was the weekly club out on the eastern end of California. So it carries a bit more of a "holy fuck" element to it.

Some folks have already begun casting aspersions about the local darklings "not supporting" Asylum enough, which I do feel is more than a bit unfair. Especially since what might actually be at issue is the venue choosing to drop them or even the resident DJs just being tired of managing it any longer. Or, gods forbid, maybe the economy is still just doing its damage to the things we love (partly due to it stripping us, the clientele, of the finances that make hitting a favored event viable).

Unfortunately, this is, at this point, all just idle speculation. I may try to head out there myself tomorrow night to see if I can get the low-down.

Ultimately, I hope for the best for my fellow darklings in the capitol. And, with time and if Asylum is truly down for the count, perhaps another "central" club will arise from the ashes... and there's a good chance that Asylum itself will be reborn like the proverbial phoenix to re-take its own place.

But, until that time, it's a bit depressing.

-- Mr. M.

Album Review: Emilie Autumn's "Fight Like a Girl"

8/4/2012

"Some are born mad.
Some achieve madness.
Others have madness thrust upon them."
-- Emilie Autumn, "Girls! Girls! Girls!"

Artist(s): Emilie Autumn

Album: Fight Like a Girl

That glorious goth-pop deviant diva strikes again with her latest album release.

My Thoughts: I was first acquainted with the music of Emilie Autumn sometime back in 2010 with her Opheliac album that sort of took the goth-pop world by storm.

The best way I've been able to describe her singing is: "she's what you'd get if Tori Amos and Annie Lennox had a mad-science love-child who would occasionally forget everything she'd ever been taught about singing and musical theory from her mothers."

And once I got to see her perform live, I realized I needed to add in the codicil of: "Oh, and she studied performance and art at the University of GaGa."

While you might think that these sound like criticisms, they're really not. I honestly consider them to be some amazing endorsements (especially considering that I put so much time and thought into trying to conceptualize that whole origin story in my head... I don't spend this much time thinking about things I don't really enjoy).

So with the release of Fight Like a Girl, I was pleased to see that Ms. Autumn kept enough of what attracted me and so many others in the first place to maintain a sense of musical continuity. But I was also pleased to see that she delved into even deeper and darker territory than she did in Opheliac. She's embraced the "Victorian mad-woman" persona, and, while the extremity of the topic might appear dated, much of it is actually quite a timely criticism concerning the still-rampant stigmatization of women and the mentally ill despite our supposedly "modern sensibilities".

Though that might be me reading entirely too much into the motives of someone who just likes to make beautifully dark and disturbing music.

Highlights: Fight Like a Girl strikes me as almost a concept album, in the vein of Queensryche's Operation: Mindcrime and Styx's Kilroy Was Here. There's a distinct sense of there being an underlying story to the progression of the music throughout the album - though the actual story itself isn't entirely clear. Of course, that sort of makes sense when we're talking about madness and insane asylums, so maybe it really is a concept album in the true sense and I just haven't listened enough to really pick it out yet.

My favorite selections from the album consist of:

"Take the Pill" - a slightly industrial piece channeling the most "Annie Lennox" elements of Ms. Autumn's musical persona. Some pretty intense targeting of the modern "pill culture", highlighting the growing "take this mind-altering pill to treat the side-effects of this other psychotropic pill" and the lack of questioning of the so-called "experts" who just keep prescribing more medications.

"Girls! Girls! Girls!" - No, this isn't a cover of the classic Motley Crue song of the same name (though, I'll admit to hoping for that a little). More of a carnival-esque ditty mocking of the old "circus freakshows" with the "freaks" being women committed to an asylum for things ranging from actual mental illness to such troublesome issues as free thinking and sexual desire (the deviants!).

Final Thoughts: A fine album taking a darkly sarcastic poke at a lot of truly disturbing topics. As I mentioned before, there seems to be a highlighting of some still extremely archaic views in modern culture concerning women and mental illness.

That being said, Ms. Autumn doesn't let the subject matter interfere with the wit and elegance (and sometimes shock) of her presentation. So if you really enjoyed Opheliac but wanted a little more coherence, Fight Like a Girl delivers a much more solid and still darker presentation than the previous album. Which, being me, is exactly what I was glad to hear.

P.S. Emilie Autumn is performing in both Oakland and Sacramento in October (the 17th and 18th, respectively). It looks like the regular pre-sale tickets are sold out, but it seems some of the VIP packages are still available for those with unnatural urges (and enough spare cash). Check out the One-Time Events page for a link to get the most updated details.

-- Mr. M.

More Vintage Than Thou

8/1/2012

"Waltz, into the darkest feeling
Waltz, without a blink I go
Waltz, to the Devil's ballet
Waltz, to Mephisto."
-- The Misfits, "Mephisto Waltz"

Yes. I really did pick that quote just because it has both my name and the word "waltz" in it. I'd have picked something even more vintage... but Franz Liszt didn't have the decency to include lyrics in his version.

I've been learning to waltz! I'm still not great, but I'm enjoying it and I managed to hit Vintage Invasion the other day. Vintage Invasion is held on the 4th Friday of every month at the Finnish Brotherhood Hall in Berkeley, and it's only $7 to get in ($5 if you're a student).

Whether you're an old hat at ballroom dancing or (like me) you're still learning to not count out loud, V.I. is a nice relaxed experience. Just a bunch of people learning to and loving dance (some of whom I hold in quite high regard). Everyone is quite pleasant and the music ranges from classic "waltzes" of the 19th century up to some fairly modern pieces that happen to have the right beat to make them perfect for this sort of thing!

The dance starts off at 8 p.m. with an hour-long waltz class for those who are still learning or just need a refresher. You'll also have chances to dance the tango, salsa, cha-cha, and polkas (during which some folks also like to kick out an ceilidh in the middle), though you might need to learn those elsewhere.

If you're interested in picking up waltz basics, I cannot recommend enough DJ Persephone's Vintage Waltz class every Tuesday down in Oakland at the Lake Merritt Dance Center (alternately referred to as the Lake Merritt Senior Center). Persephone (often accompanied by her main squeeze/helper Charles) offers a fairly solid "beginners" course at 7 p.m. And if you attend for a couple of months and feel like you want to move up, you can sign up every month for a month-long set of advanced courses they offer at 8 p.m.

And the price (at $8/person) is a pittance, especially for the value. Seriously, folks. That's a hard one to beat. [EDIT: the $8/person rate is for just the beginner's class. If you're interested in taking more the advanced classes, you are required to sign up for a whole month of classes for $36, but you are free to come "warm-up" at the beginner's classes for that month for free.]

If you're planning to go to PEERS or Gaskell ballroom events (as I am), this is a good combo for both learning the moves and then putting them into practice in an actual dance-scenario.

As an example of where this could prove useful: Steampunktoberfest! Which is happening on October 6th! I'm definitely going to be there. And if you also want to hit Steamstock out in Richmond on October 7th, you can buy a double ticket that gets you into BOTH EVENTS!!

And if you buy your tickets through this Steamstock link, some of that money will come back to SFGothic.net thanks to the beauty of FanFueled ticket vending.

You can go to something awesome AND support SFGothic.net at the same time!

Other cool stuff coming up in the near future:

08/04 - Cabaret Perilous! at the Uptown Nightclub - featuring the ever-lovely Unsinkable Molly!! (Oakland)
08/04 - Wicked Lounge at the Blue Lounge (Santa Cruz)
08/07 - Slick Idiot at the Elbo Room (San Francisco)
08/10 - Dark Shadows at the Cat Club (San Francisco)
08/11 - The Cell returns! At the Prop Box Studio (Oakland)
08/12 - Dead Can Dance at the Greek Theater (Berkeley)
08/17 - Roadside Memorial at Sub-Mission (San Francisco)
08/17 - The Witching Hour inaugural club night at the Cat Club (San Francisco)
08/18 - Club Nocturne at the Prop Box Studio (Oakland)
08/24 - Dark Shadows at the Cat Club (San Francisco)

And don't forget Death Guild every Monday night!

Hope to see you in the shadows, kids!

-- Mr. M.

Going to Solace tonight. What about you?

7/13/2012

"Night the voluptuous, night the chaste
Spreads her dark limbs, a vaulted splendour,
Above the intolerable waste."
-- Aleister Crowley, "A Fragment"

So, last month I got myself out to the revival of Solace at its new venue, the Prop Box Theater out in Oakland. (Yes, I'm only just now getting to writing about it. No, I refuse to take responsibility for my own laziness.)

Solace, itself, was exceptional and elegant as always, with Persephone and Burning Skies spinning for us while some of those with better dancing skills than your own dear Mr. M made excellent use of the new dance floor.

The new venue is really lovely. Bigger dance floor than the previous space - or maybe it just feels like it. Definitely more room for a bigger and better bar (provided by Lorelei). The only complaints I have are: a) that there is less seating (tired legs); and b) less parking.

That said, I'm going to be in attendance at tonight's Solace anyway because, as always, I love the ambiance and the culture of the attendees and the ability to converse over the music and dance in a variety of fashions (well, observe others dancing in a variety of fashions, anyway - I am learning to waltz, though, with the help of Persephone and her main squeeze Charles).

In further catching up news: I also managed to make it out to the Aesthetic Perfection show back on 6/24. Amazing performances by Blackopz and [X]-RX as the opening acts, building the energy up for the headliner. And, of course, the AP part of the show was, to put it bluntly, really fucking awesome. They did an excellent job of taking the "turned up to 11" energy from the openers and cranking it up another notch or two with a lot of stuff off of the last two albums.

Anyway, hope to see you out and about, my darklings!

-- Mr. M.

Solace returns! And it turns out we're really big in Europe.

5/31/2012

"I bet you miss
you miss my head!
I bet you miss my head!"
-- The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black, "Do You Miss My Head"

So I'm just going to admit to being a big slack-ass over the last two months.

Now that we've gotten past that and you've all forgiven me, we can move on to more important matters that have nothing to do with my failures as a human being.

The timing of my return to civilized discourse is, of course, excellent because it means I get to announce the return of that most awesome Oakland goth club/salon - Solace!

They've changed venues over to the Prop Box Studio (925 45th Ave) and are having their first return event on Friday, June 8th.

For those of you who haven't been to Club Solace before - it's a combination of dark ambient music club and gothic social salon. The music is elegant and the volume kept low so that even though there is waltzing and swirly dancing going on, one can still sit with a drink and converse with one's fellow darklings (on art, philosophy, history, and many other topics) without having to raise voices or keep commentary terse to minimize misunderstanding. While I am (clearly) a fan of loud, beat-driven music and the clubs that play it, Solace provides a delightful change of pace - re-introducing some Victorian-style sensibilities into the gothic scene and allowing a little more substance to bleed into our morbid stylings.

I hope to see some of you there in the near future!

In other news, it seems SFGothic.net has seen a steady influx of "likes" in the last month or so... but, much to my surprise, a fair number of them seem to be from places like Italy, Germany, and Brazil. Now, I'm not one for humility (seriously, guys... read some of my other posts). But this surprise definitely falls into the pleasant yet radically unexpected side of things. The internet still occasionally leaves this deviant a little in awe, what with all the inter-connectivity and stuff.

That said, I'd like to voice my welcome to our new readers from other continents!

And now some upcoming events!

06/02 - Some Like It Hot Ball (San Mateo) and Empire of Death photo exhibit (San Francisco)
06/08 - The return of SOLACE!! (Oakland)
06/16 - Club Nocturne (San Francisco) and King Kong vs. Godzilla showing (San Leandro)
06/20 - iVardensphere at DNA Lounge (San Francisco)
06/24 - Aesthetic Perfection at DNA Lounge (San Francisco)
06/26 - God Module at DNA Lounge (San Francisco)

And don't forget about Death Guild every Monday night at DNA Lounge and Dark Shadows on the second and fourth Fridays at the Cat Club.

-- Mr. M.

I hate Daylight Saving Time! I hate it SOOOOO much! Oh, and event reviews!

3/13/2012

"There is a house in New Orleans they call the Rising Sun.
And it's been the ruin of many a poor boy, and God I know I'm one"
-- The Animals, "House of the Rising Sun"

I really, really, really, really, really hate Daylight Saving Time (not "savings time", as one friend had the decency to point out to me yesterday. No "s" at the end of "saving").

First off, it's an affront to our biology. Our bodies work with a certain set of cycles and rhythms, and DST disrupts those cycles. Sometimes for weeks and some people never adapt at all. DST results in lack of sleep and all the obnoxious side effects that accompany that (irritability, inability to focus/attention deficit, inability to multitask, depression, anxiety, and, in some cases, increased likelihood of heart attack and suicide). For more details, here's some links (that I found on Google while looking for convenient evidence to support my point):

Second, the idea that DST saves energy is faulty, especially as we've changed how we use energy in the world. In fact, studies actually seem to contradict that DST has any effect on energy usage any more (if it really ever did). Behold my use of Wikipedia to support my agenda!!

Third, why do we have to fool ourselves by changing the clocks if we honestly think we need more daylight? Why not just have Summer Hours for places of business that find it useful and let the rest of us keep our hour? Are we so advanced as a species that lying to ourselves is the most productive choice?

Fourth, they've extended DST to the majority of the year now. It starts in March and doesn't end until November. Two-thirds of the year is currently spent in DST - more time than we spend in our "regular" timezone. Really? This does not make sense! (Link to: Chewbacca defense)

Fifth... Calling it DST makes it sound like some kind of disorder of the brain or disease. I'm going to refer to it as such from here on out. "I'm dealing with DST! It's not my fault! I didn't ask for this!"

Now that I'm done with my rant, let's get back to the point of my blog, shall we?

Back on the 3rd, I got to go to the Witches' Ball in Benicia. It suffered from the usual problems that Pagan Alliance events seem to regularly suffer from - a lack of any real advertising, very little seating if you didn't pay for a VIP ticket, and bad sound techs (seriously, have none of these guys heard of doing sound checks before people start showing up?). They also suffered from an extra problem this year, entirely outside of their purview - ridiculous gas prices kept a large number of the usual attendees from SF and the South Bay from making it out.

The DJ was pretty awesome, though. Got some good gothy tunes, at least for part of the evening. Also, the mead was excellent.

I also got to go to Hexenfest on the 9th. This is a first shot at a, potentially, annual event. Primarily put together by tribal rock outfit Pandemonaeon, it also featured goth-rock act The RaZor Skyline and a number of local bellydancers.

The RaZor Skyline was quite good. A little more rock than goth, they still had some solid tunes and a strong line-up. Hopefully we'll be seeing more of them in the future.

I was also surprised and delighted to see one of my favorite bellydancing divas, Dusty Paik of Snake Church, get up onstage to dance with them. Yay!!

Between stage acts, bellydancing by Anaar and Morpheus Ravenna was quite lovely as well (I particularly enjoyed Anaar's use of fans and silks).

And then we got Pandemonaeon to wrap the evening up. Best way to describe them might be Fleetwood Mac if Fleetwood Mac were more metal. Definitely good music to dance to if you like to dance in the pseudo-folk fashion that a lot of pagans do.

Also, the bar at the Oakland Metro Operahouse is pretty good for such a small bar. Hey, a man has to have his priorities, and mine apparently involve getting drunk.

Upcoming events to be aware of:

Club Nocturne on 3/17
Death Guild's multi-night 19th Anniversary Bash from 3/18 to 3/21 (featuring some really awesome bands!!)
The Hubba Hubba Revue's "Goth Night" in celebration of Death Guild's anniversary on 3/22

-- Mr. M.

Too much real life! Also, what I'm doing the next couple of weekends.

2/29/2012

"Time, time, time.
See what's become of me?
While I looked around
for my possibilities.
I was so hard to please."
-- Simon and Garfunkel, "Hazy Shade of Winter"

So BLEH.

Entirely too much going on in real life keeping me from the scene. Giving time to people I like. Having time chiseled from me by people I don't. Some other really ridiculous stuff that isn't worth going into. And work, work, work.

Anyway... some late updates -

I'll be at the Witches' Ball in Benicia on Saturday 3/3 and will probably end up hitting Hexenfest in Oakland on the following Friday 3/9. Time to throw some support to my pagan peeps, since I missed Pantheacon and didn't even get around to listing it on the site (WTF, right?).

I've also done a little cleaning up of the "One-Time Events" page, to get it back up to date. Whee!!

P.S. Don't forget about the following stuff coming up over the next couple of weeks if pagan-y stuff doesn't float your proverbial boat:

3/1 - Club Apparition
3/2 - Strangelove: The Cure Tribute Night
3/3 - Disorder (and the aforementioned Witches' Ball)
3/7 - Anti/Life's DISASTER!
3/8 - The Lost Room and Club Apparition
3/9 - Dark Shadows (and the aforementioned Hexenfest)
3/10 - Wumpskate and Rocky Horror

-- Mr. M.

Emilie Autumn's "Fight Like a Girl" Show (Late, I know)

2/10/2012

"Are you suffering?
I want your suffering.
I want your beautiful suffering,
I want to see your pain."
-- Emilie Autumn, Liar

So I managed to get out to see Emilie Autumn last week at Slim's (with the lovely Tesla Dethray on my arm).

First time I've actually been inside Slim's (I unfortunately missed the VNV Nation show late last year due to financial limitations). It's a really nice venue. Very posh bar. I wish there was more seating (that isn't VIP), but maybe it gets more packed for other shows so the floorspace is at a premium? That being the case, I wish there was some tiers, so people in the back can actually see the stage.

Meh.

The show kicked off almost an hour later than posted. So that was a little vexing.

And it started out kind of slow. The energy seemed really down when the Crumpets and eventually Ms. Autumn finally took the stage.

And that's pretty much the end of my complaints. After about fifteen minutes, the energy picked up immensely and the show really got into swing.

Ms. Autumn was wonderful, of course - dressed initially like some terrifying combination of rat-monster and Skeksis (yes, from the Dark Crystal... And yes, I really do see the whole world through film-references). I heard lots of stuff off the Opheliac album (the only one I've actually heard) and a smattering of pieces I'd not heard before (I'm assuming from the upcoming Fight Like a Girl album). All in all, good stuff, even if we didn't get to hear as much from her as I'd have liked.

If you get a chance to see Emilie Autumn in concert, I definitely recommend it. Her show is visually striking, very fashionable (if you like pseudo-Victorian gothiness), and slightly deranged in an awesome and fun way.

One of the surprise delights of the show was the Bloody Crumpets; the group of saucy corset-clad strumpets that accompany Ms. Autumn on tour. They mostly provide backing vocals and lots of visual candy and set ornamentation. In between songs, they also interacted with the crowd, flirting and having fun and just being sexy.

Really, the most impressive part is all the running around and singing while in very tight corsets. Bravo, ladies. Bravo!

My favorite was Captain Maggot, probably because I seem to like "short and adorable" (see also: Tesla), but Blessed Contessa and Naughty Veronica were quite lovely and fun, too.

I'd say it was an evening well-spent, all told. I enjoyed the show immensely once things really got moving and Slim's is actually fairly classy.

Altogether awesome-sauce.

Remember, kiddies, that Dark Shadows is tonight at the Cat. I won't be in attendance, as I'm broadening my palate by attending Pink at Mission Control tonight.

Who knows? I might be adding a whole Fetish section to the site in the near future. That might be fairly awesome.

-- Mr. M.

RPG Review: Vampire: the Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition

1/25/2012

"A beast I am, lest a beast I become."
-- Vampire: the Masquerade, 1st Edition

For those that haven't noticed yet, I'm a gamer geek. Specifically an RPG gamer geek. Even more specifically, a pen-and-paper RPG gamer geek (to the point that people that refer to the Computer RPG genre as though it were synonymous with "RPGs" actually make me scream a little inside).

And as a darkling kid of the '90s, my teenage angst hit its peak during the rise of the classic goth-y RPG Vampire: the Masquerade. I've owned every edition of the core rules down through the years: 1st edition, 2nd edition, Revised... even the much derided GURPS edition.

So can you imagine my geeky delight when the Vampire: the Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition was announced?

Yep. That's right. I paid entirely too much for a special leather-bound edition of single RPG book. Holy hell, am I a geek.

The initial purported goal of this release was to kick out a single "complete" tome for the fans in celebration of the line's 20th anniversary. But, much to White Wolf's surprise, they sold so many pre-orders that they realized they had the rebirth of their phenom flagship line on their hands and it forced them to reconsider their initial abandoning of the classic.

Thus, they have launched a new line, referred to as the Classic World of Darkness (their print-on-demand versions of the original classic books plus the new 20th-anniversary edition corebooks) and the Onyx Path (publications of supplements that were either intended and never completed/released or, in some cases, entirely new material), intended to run alongside their already-planned and still extant nWoD publications.

Later this year, they're already planning to release a similar edition for Werewolf: the Apocalypse as well as a companion book for this new edition of V:tM. There's also talk of a Mage: the Ascension 20th anniversary edition as well, and more than a few oWoD fans are already hoping and clamoring for Wraith and Changeling to get the same treatment (I, for one, would love to see a "complete" Wraith: the Oblivion book... that line was a thing of dark and disturbing beauty).

Needless to say, it warms my cold, undead heart to see something I enjoyed so much revivified from the beyond as V20 (which is the general nickname for it among the RPG-playing set).

Appearance: Well, the special pre-order release is gorgeous, bound in leather and with gilt-edges and with two bookmark ribbons. Problem is, if you're reading this review, you probably missed the window on that version. That said, White Wolf has recently released their print-on-demand version in a couple different options at Drive-Thru RPG.

Besides that, the layout is fairly decent (very reminiscent of the old 2nd Edition book more than the Revised Edition) and a lot of the art is seriously amazing, bringing back classic V:tM artists like Tim Bradstreet (his pieces at the beginning of each chapter are fucking beautiful). My only complaint here is that the art accompanying each of the vampiric clans is fairly "bleh" in my opinion, which is sort of a let-down for a book that is otherwise just so gods-damned pretty. It's also a let down because I've seen better art from the artist in previous iterations of the game.

Setting: For those not familiar with the previous editions, the game is basically set in the modern age with a host of vampiric clans (mostly, but not entirely, split among two competing vampiric societies) dwelling in the shadows and pulling the strings of the mortal world. Constant oppression by older and more powerful undead, the threat of a looming vampiric apocalypse known as Gehenna, and dark "gothic-punk" thematics are the general assumptions, though these elements are easy enough to play with and tweak.

For those that are familiar with the old editions, V20 is basically a slight "resetting" from Revised. It's assumed to take place somewhere between the 2nd and Revised editions in the metaplot timeline, so some of the changes you saw back in Revised have already taken place and others haven't; for example, all Malkavians have Dementation now... but the Assamites still haven't broken their blood curse (it also means that the Gangrel are still part of the Camarilla). There are some mentions of these upcoming metaplot elements lying in the text, but they're left to the people running the game to decide if they want these changes to have happened or not.

Also, the original metaplot progression that was heavily pushed throughout the Revised line have been mostly dropped back down to "one potential future" status for the V20 line.

One of the things that White Wolf seems to have learned for the better from their Exalted and nWoD game lines is that the "Year 0" approach is the best way to not piss off (or on, depending upon who you ask) your customer-base - so, in theory, any upcoming Onyx Path publications in support of V:tM won't be assuming a forward progressing metaplot but presenting possible options for your "home" metaplot.

Yay for hard-won lessons!

Sections: Split into three "books", which are further subdivided into relevant chapters.

"Book One" basically features the intro chapter and a chapter that breaks down the sects and then the clans of the undead.

"Book Two" explains character creation, the vampiric Disciplines (cool vampire powers), the rules and systems on which the game operates, and an in-depth look into the Morality system (and the variant Paths involved) which factor fairly heavily into the game as written.

"Book Three" covers game-mastering suggestions, a chapter on "other forces" in the world (both supernatural and mortal), the variant lesser Bloodlines of the damned (both those still extant and those believed to be extinct), and an appendix mostly discussing Merits and Flaws (basically extra boosts and disadvantages a character can start the game with).

Systems: For those who haven't played the original Storyteller system: basically add a Stat and a Skill together, roll that many dice, and count successes (any die-roll equal to or higher than the Difficulty set by the Storyteller/GM). More successes equal more and better success. No successes and one or more dice showing up with "1" means a "botch" or "really bad failure."

Fairly simple, actually.

For those who know the system from previous iterations, the folks at White Wolf took the opportunity to clean up a few things and improve a bit in numerous areas. So a number of Disciplines have been slightly tweaked (most notably Celerity and Potence), some small Clan revisions (for instance, the hated Tremere now actually have a blood-borne flaw like the rest of the undead), and certain small system changes (such as how multiple actions work) have been implemented in this version.

Twenty years of experience provided lots of insight to play with.

Final Thoughts: All in all, I think the V20 edition of Vampire is an excellent and well-built book with amazing art and phenomenal amounts of data. Whether you're an old hand with the game, a newbie looking to understand what the big deal was when it came out, or just a collector wanting to complete your set - V20 represents the single most complete iteration of Vampire: the Masquerade ever written.

One could run a game entirely from just the stuff in this one edition and never, ever purchase another supplement thanks to the sheer amount of info contained therein.

On the other hand, it's completely compatible with all the old material being released (slowly but surely) by White Wolf on print-on-demand (and it's all already available in .pdf format), so you have the whole line almost ready-made to explore if you don't already have all the supplements. And, believe me... there's a lot of material for the game. I have two bookshelves straining with Vampire: the Masquerade stuff alone and I still don't have everything for the line.

So, if you're looking to get back into the original dark role-playing game of personal horror, I can't recommend it highly enough as your first step back into the Classic World of Darkness.

-- Mr. M.