Lost Carcosa

The Willows, a band local to the North Shore area, has decided to put together an album inspired by the Salem, Massachusetts amusement park of the same name.  Linehan, an H.P. Lovecraft fan, has create some upbeat music with some earie Lovecraftian lyrics.

Still, a concept album about an old amusement park that was originally set up as a place for smallpox patients to recuperate can be kind of a hard sell.

The Willows will be playing at the Dodge Street Grill in Salem on February 15th at 9:30.

Read more at Wicked Local.

For being “older films” The Shining and A Clockwork Orange stand up very well against todays movies with all their fancy digital special effects magics. Both are still excellent movies, and I’m surprised its taken me till now to see The Shining.

I think The Shining is actually one of the few movies that have given me “the chills”
while watching it! Many a time I realized I was sitting there with my mouth opened up, head cocked to one side, watching the screen like a fish out of water.

And A Clockwork Orange…. Wow! Still awesome! The film was slightly dulled in color, and filled with scratches, but I think it only helped add to the experience. On a funny note, seeing it on the big screen, I noticed something I never saw before! When he’s at the record stand, you’ll see the soundtrack to 2001, another Kubrick film, prominently displayed right up front!

This fine set of films was shown as an awesome double feature for the opening night of Salem Fright Festival at the Cinema Salem theater in downtown Salem. They’ve got a whole slew of films lined up, including one of my favorite all time movies, The Call of Cthulhu! That will be happening tomorrow night, so if you’re near Salem, and want to see it in the theaters, you’d better act quick!

Go to Cinema Salem’s site for more details on films and times.

Much like the annual migration of the majestic Monarch Butterfly making its way through California, the annual tourist migration through Salem, Mass has begun. Clustering in large groups, they become impossible to move through, forcing one to walk on the edge of public throughfares, scrapping against the walls, or walking in the streets with the automobile traffic. Blindly these creatures stumble about, trying to follow their weak sense of direction towards their mode of transportation or next feeding stop. Sometimes, I wonder how such a creature can survive, yet every year they return in vast quantities through my litle town of Salem.

With the tourists, comes the street vendors, of course. And with street vendors comes the lovely arroma of roasted candied pecans and the heavenly scent of onion, pepper, and sausage. And what better way to top it all off, than a warm freshly made fried dough? mmm….

I live in the best place ever!

Its October! Yup! Its the best time of the year. At least for me it is. Halloween is one of my favorite things. I love t when people dress up in good costumes. GOOD costumes, I say! I love the decor, and the history behind it. Ghouls, ghosts, skeletons, and the undead. All good stuff.

And you know what? I live in (or on the edge of) what I like to call the “Cordoned off zone” of Salem, Massachusetts. Not only do I live in the best city to live in if you like Halloween, but I live right in the downtown area that gets cordoned off by the police to create one gigantic block party that spans the entire downtown area plus some.

Its not all saved for October 31st, either. The whole place is already getting ready, and will become progressively more packed with tourists as the month goes on. Tourists may be a lite annoying to have to navigate through at times, but theres also all the locals and shop owners putting up more and more decorations, getting into costume, and lots of fun events leading up to the big day.

One of these events will be the Salem Bizarre Bazaar, where you can go check out and buy goods from local artists and merchants. One of my friends, Amanda from the No Soap Radio webcomic will be there selling her goods. Stop by and check her stuff out if you get the chance! You can also see her wares online, too.

Bizarre Bazaar - Downtown Salem
Saturday, October 14 & Sunday, October 15
Two-Day street festival featuring entertainment, crafts, food, and more!