Join historian and occult scholar Mitch Horowitz for a 12-week course exploring the history and practice of modern occultism. About this event ***This course meets weekly August 4–October 20 from 8–9:30 p.m. ET / 7–8:30 p.m. CT Occult scholar and widely known voice of esoteric ideas Mitch Horowitz (“solid gold”—David Lynch) presents a lively, intellectually serious historical and practical exploration of modern occultism. This twelve-week course provides a comprehensive overv

For the majority of my life, I’ve been told that darkness leads to death. I was raised to believe that darkness and light are synonymous with evil and good. I believe this stems from the judeo-christian idea that god is light; “in him is no darkness at all.” Despite the god of the bible regularly using darkness as a tool to accomplish his will, the book of Proverbs also says “the way of the wicked is like a deep darkness.” When indoctrinated in this dogma, or the ones twisted

It takes a lot of time, work, and dedication to become a professional in any field. Becoming a Professional Weirdo takes something else… I met Jordan Jonas on Friday the 13th, in July 2018. This was my first official Blood Booth at Sister Bar. He walked in around 1 am, wearing a Local Boogeyman tee, and hair that looked like it jumped off the cover of August 89’s issue of Metal Hammer Magazine. He and his girlfriend, Tiffany, had come into the bar after what I could only assu

My head was resting on the interior frame of a small SUV, behind the driver’s seat, parked outside an outlet mall in California. I held a book that I can say without a doubt, has influenced who I have become today. Not to say that I am mad… I was 15 years old when I read Poe’s short story, The Tell Tale Heart. It’s a quick-paced tale of terror that begins with the confession of a cold-blooded murder. I’d read various poems from Poe earlier on, and I could have honestly called

The historical context of Edgar Allan Poe is always worth noting when discussing his work. The United States was plagued by Tuberculosis and chattel slavery. This comes across in his poetry through a variety of motifs. Do you remember reading Edgar Allan Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher (or, perhaps, having it read to you)? I believe this particular poem is a not-so-subtle commentary on race, racial purity, and the transmission of property (among other things) within a tr

Edgar Allan Poe. The Tomahawk Man. Progenitor of what some may deem as horror, the psychedelia and the psychosis and the wherewithal of the human condition, writ upon the pages of burgeoning, and troubling, times—whilst going through his own troubling times, mind you: rifling through the waning cupboards of poverty, circumstances orphaning, abandoning, coming to awful grips with the loss of both his Wife and Mother at the early hands of tuberculosis, struggling the th

We’re at the dawn of a new year and who the fuck cares?! I do. Ultimately, the biggest tangible change we see is the need to purchase a new calendar, but that need comes with weight. It comes with hope for a new season in life. A new year gives us a fresh start and a new perspective. These changes can be helpful to us and give us the chance to change the lens we see life through. At the risk of getting on board with the “New Year, New Me” bullshit, I do think this is the perf

Pyewacket dropped in Canada during the Toronto International Film Festival last year, followed by a limited release in December. As of March of this year, it hit the rest of the world and slipped under my radar until June when one of our local eclectic theaters announced their showing. The poster alone was enough to get me curious. The image of the bloody hand and strand of yarn mixed with the black metal font and subtle dead human lying in the background had me hooked. Metal

Adaptations always are tricky. They can sometimes hit the brunt of the mark – rarely, yes, but it does happen luckily from time to time, and usually with some unavoidable plot-point martyrdom. And sometimes they lie in a somewhere-in-between, existing as a wildly different story with no actual relations to the source material, but yet still managing its decency and enjoyability as whatever it is. But most often, they fall short and beyond, crippling the hopes and dreams of th

I have had the pleasure of consuming great horror this year. I’ll gladly speak highly of The Haunting of Hill House. Annihilation checked all of my sci-fi/horror boxes while adding in plenty of Lovecraftian lore. And Mandy was the best kind of gruesome. However, nothing had quite the impact that Hereditary did. If you have not seen Hereditary, kindly remove yourself from the rock you’ve been living under. I saw it. It kicked my ass. I analyzed with friends. I saw it again.

Apostle was written by Gareth Evens with Dan Stevens, who also acted in Beauty and the Beast (2017), as the Beast. I knew nothing about this movie before I watched it. I saw it on Netflix and decided to watch the trailer which peaked my curiosity. I didn’t know the writer, director, or even know who Gareth Evens was until I looked him up on IMDB. Knowing nothing about this movie allowed me to watch it without any expectations and I really enjoyed it. A little background about

Dark Room Horror’s Blood Booth is a photo booth with a horror twist. Every time we set up at events or in studio, everybody gets free blood and prop weapons. This year, we brought in our first guest to shoot with, the infamous Christmas Demon, Krampus. If you’re unfamiliar, Krampus originated in Germanic folklore and is known for coming after the naughty boys and girls who received cole from Santa. He then proceeds to beat children with sticks until they’ve learned their les

Based on the True Case Files of the Warrens… The Conjuring This movie really gives me the creeps. I think that once a movie is not only based on demons and satanic activities but is also based on true events it goes a little too far for my tastes. I saw this movie for the first time this year and I tried to watch it again for the purposes of this review, but I only got about halfway through it. I think the filming and the special effects are well done. The jump scenes are wel

There are good reasons to be afraid of the dark. If you love being scared, it’ll be the night of your life. Fright Night! This was my first time watching this classic. There were some bothersome aspects, mostly the friend Ed’s character. Is he a bully or does he get bullied? Still not sure on that one. But overall the story is a timeless tale of terror; every child’s worse fear. The use of practical effects is remarkable and missing from today’s cinema. Specifically, the wolf

Day 26: The scariest comedy of all time! Young Frankenstein. Young Frankenstein is a movie I will watch year after year. The jokes are obvious and silly but the pacing is excellent and I never feel like I miss out the punchline. But what amazes me here is the actual attention to detail placed on delivering a product that feels like it I was made way back when. The staging shots are all done in a similar slow pan and the lighting tricks are simple but work well with the black

Day 25: Every family tree hides a secret… Hereditary. This movie is a cinema masterpiece as far as combining great special effects with a believable horror storyline. There are very subtle special effects that are just done perfectly. The build up of mystery and suspense is really good. The characters evolve with the story line really well with great acting. The last 20-30 minutes of the movie pull everything together and really make the movie worthwhile. I felt like the movi

Day 18: A new dimension in evil; There is a hell – This is worse. The Void. The Void is not perfect though it does deserve at least one viewing. The acting is just okay across the board with a relational subplot that’s been done plenty of times before. Where it shines is the practical effects. Almost every creature and set piece look handmade and I couldn’t help but feel nostalgic to horror movies of yesteryear when that was all they had. Each layer down the shift in atmosphe

Day 17: Talk on the phone. Finish your homework. Watch T.V. Die …in The House of the Devil. The House of the Devil is a slow, slow burn. Unfortunately, when it does pick up it has already been so long since anything exciting has happened the climax seems thrown in there at the end. As if the first hour and a half is one movie and the finale is separate. I wanted more build to that climax, there were honestly maybe only one or two clues before our Samantha is actually in dange

Day 15: It’s just a bunch of hocus pocus. The Sanderson Sister’s may be responsible for my love of Salem, Mass and everything associated with it. Hocus Pocus came on the scene when I was three years old so naturally, I grew up with it. I get that there’s a heavy amount of nostalgia associated with this movie but nobody can deny that Bette Midler kills this role. This is one of those movies that gets me stoked for the season, even in March… the first time I watched it this yea