DJ Curium's Witching Hour

Well, I attempted my first night of djing in a club a few weeks ago, and it went much better than I thought. 

Allow me to share my playlist: 

Wanderer-Symone Smash-it

Sign of the Zodiac-Rasputina

Iceblink Luck-Cocteau Twins

Witchcraft-Book of Love 

White Rabbit-Collide

Fallen-One Dove

Heaven-the Golden Palominos

Bazamba-Sister Soleil

Violently Happy-Bjork

Daymalhum-Natacha Atlas

Veka(ext.)-Zola Jesus 

Ha Howa Ha Howa-Sexwitch

Strangeness and Charm-Florence and the Machine 

Down by the Water-PJ Harvey 

*If everything goes to hell I’m just going to put this on and leave bonus song” Open Your Heart covered by Birthday Massacre

CONvergence 2017 Playlist

My original set though I had to drop a couple of songs due to time constraints. Includes source material. Pretty awesome and looking forward to doing it again.

1. Yellow Flicker Beat performed by Lorde from the movie Mockingjay Part. 1 based on the novel Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

2. #1 Crush -Garbage from the movie Romeo & Juliet, story by William Shakespeare 

3. In Your Grave -Jaymes Bullet from the movie Vampire Academy based on the books in the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead 

4. I Want You to Want Me performed by Letters to Cleo from the movie 10 Things I Hate About You adapted from The Taming of The Shrew by Shakespeare

5. Kids in America- The Muffs from the movie Clueless an adaptation of the book Emma by Jane Austen (also recently featured in Riverdale)

6. Hush performed by Kula Shaker from the movie I Know What You Did Last Summer based on the book by Lois Duncan 

7. Let’s Do It-Joan Jett & Paul Westerberg from the movie Tank Girl based on the comics series Tank Girl  by Jamie Hewlett & Alan Martin 

8. It’s On Again by Alicia Keys (featuring Kendrick Lamar) from the movie The Amazing Spiderman 2 based on the comic series created by Stan Lee

9. Backdoor Lover performed by “Du Jour” from the movie Josie and the Pussycats based on the comics created by Dan DeCarlo

10. Poker Face performed by Lady Gaga from the movie the Lightening Thief from the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan 

11. Obsession performed by Sky Ferreira from the show The Vampire Diaries based on the book series created by L. J. Smith 

12. Choosing Dauntless by Junkie XL  featuring Ellie Goulding from the movie Divergent based on the book series by Veronica Roth 

13. Into the Lair performed by Zedd from the movie The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones based on the book series by Cassandra Clare

14. Tea Party performed by Kerli from the movie Through the Looking Glass based on the book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll 

15. Brand New Day performed by Diana Ross and Micheal Jackson from the movie The Wiz based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz book series by L. Frank Baum

16. Be Our Guest performed by Ewan McGregor, Emma Thompson, Ian McKellen, Gugu Mbatha-Raw from the movie Beauty and the Beast based on the book La Belle et la Bête by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont

17. Other Father Song performed by They Might Be Giants from the movie Coraline based on the book by Neil Gaiman

18. Kings and Queens and Vagabonds  performed by Ellem from the show Reign inspired by the Young Royals Series by Carolyn Meyer 

19. Breath of Life performed by Florence and the Machine from the movie Snow White and the Huntsman based on the fairy tale by The Brothers Grimm

20. Once Upon a Dream performed by Lana Del Rey from the movie Maleficent based on the stories La Belle au bois Dormant by Charles Perrault and Briar Rose by the Brothers Grimm

For my 500th post-Vampires-obviously.

We’ve covered some heavy stuff in the last few days and Young Adult books are not all doom and gloom, so let’s talk about…HAHA Just Kidding-Yes they are! It just isn’t always nuclear war doom and gloom. Sometimes it’s dramatic, sexy, and yes everyone lives in a nice house and drives a nice car somehow even though nobody actually works doom and gloom-VAMPIRES! I generally think in the supernatural world you pick a side-zombies or vampires-and I most assuredly fall into vampires. In fact, it got to the point that I was reading so many vampire books I asked my friends and co-workers to stage an intervention if they saw me pick up one more. 
What can you do? You read Lost Souls (Poppy Z. Brite) when you’re 15 and that’s that. And no one show or movie over the last twenty years can fill the role of drama and sexy quite like the Vampire Diaries. 
The original books were first published in the early 90’s when Vampire stories were having something of a renaissance. Author LJ Smith created the series, which is set in a little place called Fell’s Church. When the rights were picked up for the show they decided to change the name of the town to Mystic Falls because the producers did not like the religious implications of the first name. (Mystic Falls is actually Covington, Georgia, where the series is filmed. That almost changed a few years ago when anti-gay rights legislation was set to be signed by the governor, but enough companies threatened to leave that the bill was dropped). Not too far into the show being filmed, author LJ Smith was fired from writing her own series after two decades because the television producers did not like the direction she was taking the story. This took a strange turn of events when the author turned to fan fiction to finish the storyline, and fans started to boycott her previous publishers and made her stories best sellers on Kindle Words. Fast forward 8 seasons and the Vampire Diaries has turned into one of the most successful vampire franchises out there, and includes another very popular spinoff: The Originals. (I somewhat prefer this one because I have a soft spot for stories set in New Orleans, because of course.)
The Vampire Diaries has all the trappings of escapist, young adult fantasy. Attractive 20-somethings playing teenagers, a mysterious small town steeped in folklore, what little evidence there is of parents of any kind is evidenced by their children discovering their long-hidden secrets of the supernatural and shenanigans from eras past, real life co-stars caught up in love triangles, being able to get up to anything at any time all while looking dashing, and last but certainly not least, a song attached to it that is instantly recognizable if you have even accidentally seen an advertisement for the show. 
Forever undecided between who to spend eternity with (which is something we all seem pretty determined to figure out at the wise old-age of 18) this song mirrors rather perfectly the story’s ability to go round and round again the sordid love affairs of the Salvatore Brothers, Elena, and later on Caroline (and occasionally throw a bone to the other people in the group of friends and cohorts) (but only dangerously flirting with outsiders never to be taken *too seriously*). Obsession is most assuredly the theme of this particular mythology. Reincarnations, prophecies, destiny, and the inescapable ill-fated love-
Sky Ferreira’s song sums it all up quite perfectly. I give you one of the *many, many* fan made videos-
(As a side note one of the things that genuinely cracks me up about the Vampire Diaries: characters are beheading one another, drinking blood, performing witchcraft rituals, drinking, smoking pot, engaging in illustrious sexual relationships-but if anyone smokes a cigarette everyone has an absolute meltdown). Enjoy! And remember-*especially* when it comes to Vampires-age is just a number.

The 100 (but really only like 20 or something)

Nuclear War. Fanatical religion. Tribalism. Treacherous A.I. Ecological Disaster. Making our children fight wars for us. Just to name a few of the elements that fuel the storylines of the show "The 100". Based on a book series by Kass Morgan, the television show "The 100" sits on a lot of lists with titles “Best Shows You’ve Never Seen” and “Most Underrated Sci-Fi Shows.” The overwhelming majority of the time I do not agree about what shows are on these lists, but in this case they are correct. 
Set a little less than 100 years after nuclear war has wiped out most of mankind, "The 100" tells the story of 4,000 survivors sent to live in a space station above the planet to ensure the continuation of the human race. Resources are scarce and they are supposed to last far beyond what they realistically can, so any crime, no matter how small, is punished by death-unless you are under the age of 18. These crimes include stealing needed meds or food, and having more than one child.
But best laid plans really are the road to hell. The ark (as the station is called) does not have what it takes to ensure the survival of anyone, much less 4,000 people, so they send 100 “prisoners” to see if Earth is in any way habitable. Here they find radioactive storms, toxic soil, warring clans, and societies that shun anyone not genetically attractive (not unlike leper colonies from history). 
Merciless in killing off of characters, somewhere near the end of episode 3 The 100 is already down to less than half. (At this point into season 3 I am surprised if anyone makes it through an episode, much less a season). 
"The 100" brings with it some of the more realistically theorized behavior of humanity after a nuclear war than I would say most shows do. In the sci-fi writing world there are genuinely only a handful of things writers seem to agree on. Humankind’s annihilation at their own hand, be it through nuclear war or ecological disaster, definitely is one of those things. And really, when you have a look around, I don’t think anyone (reasonable) would disagree that this is a possibility beyond measure these days. It also establishes once again that here on Earth we seem to have a pretty hard time learning any lessons. 
The books had not yet been published when the CW picked up the rights for the story. I didn’t know much about it when it was being filmed, but I decided to avoid watching it for some time because what little I knew about it I didn’t want spilling over into my own writing as I was rounding out completing my first sci-fi novel at the time. (This ended up being unnecessary as the stories are pretty different). 
In the first season of the show the soundtrack was comprised of popular, recognizable hit songs and it did not work. It was one the few elements keeping it from being a serious sci-fi epic, but season 2 came and that changed. 
As the kids go out into the world and discover not only do they not necessarily have any idea what morality is or what that could even possibly mean in this world they now live in, the music gets more complex and immersive. And one way this is demonstrated is by the discovery of relics of the past. And it is UNSETTLING. It’s in these moments that the nature of the story really hits home. A very good example of this is a scene when a group is headed once again to find if there is any safe passage across a stretch of land and in a moment of seemingly carefree jubilance they sing along to "Add It Up" by the Violent Femmes-a pretty familiar song in the indy rock world. It’s only then you realize how eerie the lyrics to this piece of music really are, and that 100 years from now is not much time. 
*as a side note, the linguist who worked on Game of Thrones has also worked in developing the Grounder language on "The 100" 
*I also appreciate that sexuality is a non-issue. It just is.

White Rabbit

In continuing with giving a glimpse of my upcoming dj set at Convergence.

If you know me even a little bit it would be no surprise to know this post is about Alice in Wonderland. At this point in my life I own over 50 different editions of the book everything from a replica of the original manuscript (which does not leave England) to the challenging interpretation(and often banned) version written By Alan Moore, Lost Girls. 
White Rabbit most assuredly sits amongst my favorite all time songs. Although, I would suspect not for the reasons one might assume. 
It is a story that has influenced everything from The Matrix to Guillermo Del Toro’s work and has numerous movie versions, the most recent ones being those produced by Tim Burton. Many people took issue with these movies and I can definitely see that point of view. And I do also fall into the category of people who feel at this point Tim Burton’s interpretations of others’ work is not particularly good. 
However, there is some charm and merit to be found in the most recent movie Through the Looking Glass (and I might add a particularly enjoyable soundtrack). This film touches on the treatment women received throughout Victorian Times for not bowing to the conventions of society. Where anything out of the ordinary was an indication of mania or hysteria. In addition, Alice’s resolve to help her friend the Mad Hatter and making the impetuous decisions of a young person which often lead to unexpected consequences despite good intentions- a part of growing up that is very real. 
At this point in my search for music I could likely play an entire evening of only Alice in Wonderland theme songs and none more so than covers of White Rabbit. 
The original, of course, being that written and performed by one of my favorite vocalists, Grace Slick. 
This was the first song written for Jefferson Airplane by Grace Slick. At the time she wasn’t officially a part of the band and had another job until a producer bought out her contract with another company for $750 so she could become a full member. The song was released in 1967, the height of counter-culture in the 60s, a time in our history most notable for protesting the Vietnam War. (People quickly took to the song as being an anthem for the use of drugs, most pertinently LSD.) She was brought on to be a part of Jefferson Airplane because the other members wanted someone who was outspoken and aggressive.
This, however, was not the point or the intention of why she wrote this song. 
She maintained throughout her career that she wrote the song not to only encourage people to continue to expand their education (as noted by the lyric “Feed your head”) but to also point out the great hypocrisy she always felt came from parents reading kids stories like Alice in Wonderland that do reference drugs (Peter Pan, Wizard of Oz- being two other notable classics that do so as well) and then to punish them for experimentation and exploration as they grew older rather than educate them. 
Despite being a song that has maintained a cult status since its release, the highest it ever reached on Billboard was #8. 
Grace Slick is currently retired from music but still makes a living off of White Rabbit and runs a one-woman art show where her most popular series of paintings are based on Alice in Wonderland.
I came across this fan-made video of clips from the movie with Pink performing White Rabbit live at one of her shows. (She performs a different song on the soundtrack). I was surprised to find I liked her cover a great deal and read not all that long ago that so did Grace Slick. I might add, they nearly left it off the album altogether thinking it would never catch on…

In Which I am Going to Dj at Convergence

To be clear, I was never under any illusion that trying to dj was an easy task. As a party host/long time club-goer-if you put even a bit of effort into doing anything really- it’s a lot of work (and also money but that’s a conversation for another time). 
However, now that I’ve been learning not just the gear but what it means to put together a specific idea for a set, I can tell you with certainty this is a wonderful but complicated and time-consuming craft. I was someone who liked to dig for music already, but getting into something that’s niche as is fantasy/sci-fi/horror music soundtracks specifically based on books for Young Adults -well, let’s just say my next book isn’t done yet because I decided to give this a try too. Yeah that’s it. 
I wanted to share a little bit about what I’ll be attempting on Friday night by sharing videos and clips from movies in the theme. I decided for Sunday to start with something from The Wiz because as a kid growing up it was one of the few things I recall watching on TV from time to time, particularly on Sunday for family movie days. It was a pretty big deal because of course when we are honest we know that there there is not enough inclusiveness in the scifi/fantasy world -especially in movies. And really, when you know what you want to do and you know who is going to come I do not see the point in throwing a party if you are not even going to try to have something for everyone. 
SO I start here. 
A few things about the books and movies:
The Wiz is based on the 14-book series that started with The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum in 1900.
The first Oz movie was not a commercial success even though the books were a smashing hit.
The Wiz also didn’t start as a box office success but did end with critical success including garnering 5 Oscar Nominations. 
In the books Dorothy’s shoes are not red. They are silver. Diana Ross wore silver, Judy Garland wore the red ones.
L. Frank Baum worked for women’s suffrage. 
The Wiz is when Michael Jackson started to learn choreography, which he took very seriously. 
Quincy Jones, who put together the music for the film, never left the set. 
There was backlash over this movie as people called it a movie “for black people” rather than a movie with “black stars” and it had a direct effect on the film’s original box office take and distribution. 
Set in modern environments, the film pays tribute to the director’s home city by featuring landmarks like the Brooklyn Bridge and Coney Island. 
I picked this particular clip because I never recalled seeing it in the times that I watched The Wiz on TV as a child. I came to learn that it was, in fact, edited out because it was “too sexy.” 
Considering this is a scene about opioid flowers I’m not sure the hot ass ladies are the problem but you can decide for yourself. I present “The Poppy Girls”.