TWF Ep. 32 A Dark Song

 

6.5 

Welcome, Friends!  It's been a long time since I've posted a new episode of The Wytch Files podcast.  What can I say, life in its forceful and mysterious way put things on hold for a bit but I am back with a new movie review.  I take a closer look at the 2016 independent horror film A Dark Song, written and directed by Liam Gavin.  You can find the episode on all your favorite podcasting sites or if you prefer, you can click on the player attached above for the full episode.

Below are some links to further information for the film and other interesting related tidbits:

Interviews with A Dark Song's Creator Liam Gavin:

https://www.scannain.com/interview/a-dark-song-interview/

https://www.shockya.com/news/2017/08/31/exclusive-interview-liam-gavin-dark-song-us-blu-ray-dvd-release/

interview-with-a-dark-song-creator-liam-gavin

A free online copy of The Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage edited by Samuel Lidell MacGregor Mathers can be found on Joseph H. Peterson's fantastic Twilit Grotto - Esoterica Archives website:

http://www.esotericarchives.com/abramelin/abramelin.htm

Georg Dehn's 2015 English edition of The Book of Abramelin:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23365852-the-book-of-abramelin

If you read German, here is a PDF book chapter from "Abraham of Worms Book of the True Practice of the Old Magic" (2020), edited by Rick-Arne Kollatsch:

https://hcommons.org/deposits/item/hc:34213/

Here is also an article by Rick-Arne Kollatsch regarding the book:

https://www.academia.edu/55141247/Abraham_of_Worms_the_disciple_of_Abramelin_the_Mage_

The late, great Israel Regardie wrote this paper analyzing the various versions of the Bornless Ritual:

https://www.academia.edu/23281987/The_Bornless_Ritual_Versions_Analysis_Israel_Regardie

Sam Block of The Digital Ambler wrote a great blog post analyzing the Headless Rite also known as the Bornless Ritual:

https://digitalambler.com/rituals/classical-hermetic-rituals/the-headless-rite/

Frater S.C.F.V.'s blog post on the power of the Headless Rite:

https://lightinextension.wordpress.com/2018/09/22/the-staggering-power-of-the-stele-of-jeu-or-the-rite-of-the-headless-one/

All music for the episode is provided by Epidemic Sound.  The individual songs and artists are:

Into Thin Air by Fabien Tell

Between Two Worlds by Farrell Wooten

Ventifacts by Anthony Earls

Fragile Whispers by Gavin Luke

Radiant Shore by Cobby Costa

Thin Air by Bill Ferngren

The Clearing by Golden Anchor

In the Absence of Light by Gavin Luke

Inner Spaces by Gavin Luke

Theme music X-Files Theme Parody by Mallon Khan. 

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Ep. 31: Plague Time Favorites

Hello and welcome to Episode 31 of The Wytch Files!  I have for you a recommendations episode for the end of year plague times.  The episode is chock full of favorites from movies, TV, comics, books, documentaries and podcasts, which contain occult themes or are occult adjacent.  The media presented were not all released or published in 2021 but were media that I consumed and finished in 2020 and 2021. So, relax, grab a cup or glass of your beverage of choice, take a seat and enjoy the episode.  You may find some great new media or simply be reminded of an old favorite.

All music for the episode is provided by Epidemic Sound.  The individual songs and artists are:

Silent Night (Harp version) by John Abbot

We Three Kings (Guitar version) by Julyan Bryan

A Snowflake's Tale by Howard Harper-Barnes

In Need of Christmas by Home for the Holidays

Winter Waltz by Leimoti

O Little Town of Bethlehem (Jazz Trio Version) by Starry Bay Trio

Theme music X-Files Theme Parody by Mallon Khan. 

If you have any feedback or review suggestions, please contact us!

If you're liking the show, please review it on your favorite podcatcher application.

Ep. 30: The Craft: Legacy (2020)

 3.5/7.0

The Craft: Legacy movie released in 2020 is the focus of this episode.  The movie written and directed by Zoe Lister-Jones based on characters created by Peter Filardi, is a soft re-boot and sequel to the original movie The Craft.  The film stars Cailee Spaeny, Lovie Simone, Gideon Adlon and Zoe Luna as four teenage witches who form a witchcraft coven and are persecuted by warlock Adam Harrison, played by David Duchovny, who represents the toxic side of the patriarchy.

The Wytch Files discusses and analyzes the major themes of the movie including toxic masculinity, female power, sisterhood, diversity and inclusivity and of course, the overall magic of the film.  The production used the services of three popular witches as occult consultants including Pam Grossman, Bri Luna a/k/a The Hood Witch and Aerin Fogel which helped with keeping the movie as authentic as possible.

Some articles mentioned in the episode and for further reading:

Variety - How The Craft: Legacy Director Built her Thoroughly Modern Coven by Matt Donnelly

Vanity Fair - Exclusive: How Zoe Lister-Jones Reimagined The Craft's Iconic Teen Witches  by Valentina Valentini

Time - The Craft Inspired A Generation of Teenage Witches. Now A Sequel Is Poised To Do The Same.  by Peg Aloi

Bloody Disgusting - How 'The Craft: Legacy' Invokes the Spirit of Legacy and Utilizes Authentic Witchcraft [Set Visit] by Meagan Navarro

Glamour - The Craft: Legacy Is Full of Clever Nods to the Original by Kim Wong-Shing

Patheos - The Craft: Legacy - A Movie Review by John Beckett

The Craft: Legacy (First Thoughts) by Jason Mankey

Patheos - The Craft: Legacy - A Spoilerific Review by Devin Hunter

Patheos - The Craft Legacy Is Fine But... Confused? by Gwyn

I've also compiled a playlist for the episode packed with interviews, movie clips and other related content for your viewing pleasure.  Just go to YouTube and search for The Wytch Files channel and The Craft: Legacy playlist.

All music for this episode was provided by Epidemic Sound and the individual songs and artists are:

Respect Me by Toby Tranter

Beats of Burden by Molife

Rise Up Now (clean version) by Soleil

Libre by Timothy Infinite

Ethereal Garden by IXVI

Occult by Ballpoint

Cornucopia by Jobii

Dark Mind by Wendel Scherer

Theme music X-Files Theme Parody by Mallon Khan. 

If you have any feedback or review suggestions, please contact us!

If you're liking the show, please review it on your favorite podcatcher application.

Ep. 29: Suspiria (2018)

 7.0/7.0

Welcome back to The Wytch Files!  It's been a long time but it's great to be back.  I hope you are all doing well in these crazy times.  For this episode, I review Luca Guadagnino's 2018 Suspiria, a reimagining of the Dario Argento original film of the same name released in 1977.  The film is a feast of dance, choreography, magic and witches with an incredible score by Radiohead's Thom Yorke.  The episode is a hefty piece of audio and musical choreography rich with information and magic.  As usual, BEWARE FOR THERE WILL BE SPOILERS!  You have been warned!

The episode makes mention of multiple topical tidbits and below is a listing of links to further expand on this information.  I hope you enjoy going down the Mutterhaus otherworld!

A trio of brief articles on Dario Argento's thoughts on the new Suspiria:

Indiewire

The Film Stage

Indie For Bunnies

Thomas De Quincey's Levana and Our Ladies of Sorrow essay:

Bartleby

Aja Romano's Vox article "How Suspiria turns the color red into a lot point":

Vox

Sigmund Freud's paper "The Uncanny" (1919):

The Uncanny

Britt Hayes' article "Sunday Reads: Suspiria - Psychoanalyzing Luca Guadagnino's Rapturous Rebirth of a Horror Classic":

Birth.Movies.Death

Damien Jalet interviews regarding Suspiria choreography:

Vanity Fair

Vulture

The Guardian

Richard Cassaro's article on the Masonic Square & Compass:

Masonic Square Compass Symbology

Gunter Berghaus' article regarding Neoplatonic and Pythagorean Notions of World Harmony and Unity:

Dance Research: The Journal of the Society for Dance Research

Karen C. Adams' article "Neoplatonic Aesthetic Tradition in the Arts":

College Music Symposium

Lynn Vivien Hubbard's thesis paper "Bergson, Plotinus and the Harmonics of Evolution:

University of the West of England, Bristol

Video that contains Damien Jalet's "Les Meduses" and other dance pieces performed at the Louvre:

Vimeo - Les Meduses - Louvre

Devil in the Details blog article doing an occult horror analysis of Suspiria:

Hooks, Hair & Blood

Olivier Joyard of Numero interviews Tilda Swinton interview with some Suspiria content:

Numero - Tilda

Miranda Corcoran's blog post review of Suspiria (2018):

A Middle-Aged Witch - Suspiria

Jordan Crucchiola's article about Suspiria's "Black Sabbath" scene:

Vulture

Ian Marcks article "Suspiria: Season of the Witch":

American Cinematographer

Gunseli Yalcinkaya's article regarding Suspiria's set designs:

Dezeen

Alexandra Heller-Nicholas' article "Three Mothers Redux":

Senses of Cinema

Vera Maletic - Body-Space-Expression: The Development of Rudolf Laban's Movement and Dance Concepts:

Laban

Video: Pina Bausch's "Viktor":

Vimeo

Books that inspired Luca Guadagnino's Suspiria:

AnOther

Hubert Vigilla's articles "Deep Analysis: Luca Guadagnino's Suspiria Remake:

Flixist - Part 1

Flixist - Part 2

Choreographer Pina Bausch information:

Pina Bausch Foundation

The New Yorker

Choreographer Sasha Waltz information:

Mariinsky

Sasha Waltz & Guests

Wikipedia

Choreographer Martha Graham information:

Martha Graham Dance Company

PBS - American Masters

Wikipedia

Martha Graham's autobiography which I highly recommend if you can find it:

Blood Memory

Choreographer Mary Wigman information:

The Guardian

Journal article

JSTOR

Journal article - Restaging Hysteria

Director Rainer Maria Fassbinder - 10 essential films by Alex Davidson:

BFI

Cuban Artist Ana Mendieta:

The Heroine Collective

Nina Renata Aron - Timeline

Artsy

Artnet

Guggenheim

Galerie LeLong & Co

The music featured in this episode is provided by Free Music Archive, Musopen and YouTube Audio Library:

The Long Way Back by Antonio Bizarro

Anxiety by Kai Engel

Cosmic Relevance by Unheard Music Concepts

Sopor by Kai Engel

By Night by Ayla Nereo

Bonteka by Ayla Nereo

Sleepless by Unheard Music Concepts

Somnolence by Kai Engel

Great Expectations by Kai Engel

Adieu au Piano by Ludwig van Beethoven

Wiener Klange Im Walzertakt Mit by Johann Strauss I

Lucerna by Sergey Cheremisinov

Breath of Death, Part I by Sergey Cheremisinov

Chance by Kai Engel

Imminence by Kai Engel

Breath of Death, Part II by Sergey Cheremisinov

Wiegenlied (Lullaby, Cradle Song) by Johannes Brahms

Please be sure to check out the attached playlist for some great videos connected to Suspiria and for selections of Thom Yorke's Suspiria soundtrack.

Theme music X-Files Theme Parody by Mallon Khan. 

If you have any feedback or review suggestions, please contact us!

If you're liking the show, please review it on your favorite podcatcher application.

Ep 28: The Dark Crystal (1982)

Hello Friends! Welcome back to episode 28 of The Wytch Files! Today we are extremely pleased to bring you a review of Jim Henson's The Dark Crystal movie which was released in 1982. Jim Henson wanted to produce a film that was a lot darker than the show he was most known for at the time which was The Muppet Show. He wanted to create a film that was akin to the old Grimm's fairy tales with their twisted and sometimes scary storylines. Henson kept a sort of daily production diary for the film and his other creative projects in his Red Book.  You can also read the film's script if writing is your jam.

In the episode, we discuss how Jen's journey in the story follows Joseph Campbell's hero's journey. Kayla Spagna's blog post "The Dark Crystal" and Campbell's Heroic Journey goes into detail about Jen's hero journey.  You can also read about all 17 stages of Joseph Campbell's monomyth here.

The Dark Crystal has its share of esoteric symbolism and philosophy within its story and production design.  Matt Auryn has a great post on his Patheos blog "For Puck's Sake" which discusses possible occult influences on the film and it is a delicious read.  The website "JaysAnalysis" also has an interesting post that goes into the esoteric analysis of the film.  Jim Henson was hugely influenced by psychic and author Jane Robert's book "Seth Speaks" which was entirely written from material she channeled from a discarnate being called Seth beginning in 1963. You can read more about it at The Seth Material in a Nutshell post at the Diary of a Mystic blog.

One of the most amazing sights in the film is the first look at Aughra's observatory with its fabulous giant orrery rotating above and around the characters.  You too can build your own orrery with a little help from The Art and Craftsmanship of Zeamon, check out "Building an Orrery" where he takes you through it step by step.  We also mentioned the practice of sun-gazing used for healing and to increase vitality.

Dreamfasting is a psychic bond that occurs between our two Gelfling protagonists Jen and Kira when they touch hands which allows them to share memories.  Science has actually achieved the ability to form brain to brain mind connections between human beings and you can read about it here and here.

The Mystics used sound through vocalization of vowels to create a resonance to aid them with their spiritual and magical workings. These vocalizations or mantras are powerful transformative sounds and this article explains more about mantras and how to use them.  The Science of Mantras explains how mantras can be used for healing and environmental transformation.

Speaking of sound and energy waves, a recent study revealed that The Great Pyramid of Giza can focus electromagnetic energy and its chambers incorporate sound technology.

 We can not talk about The Dark Crystal without speaking a little about crystals.  Judy Hall is a recognized authority on crystals and has written multiple books on the subject, be sure to check out her website for a wealth of information on crystals.  We mention calcite in the episode and The Hood Witch has a informative blog post on calcite and also provides a meditation using the stone.

Lastly, the Dark Crystal cosmology was greatly expanded after the release of the film through books and comic books.  Here is a brief listing of some of those books and comics:

Jim Henson's The Dark Crystal: Creation Myths, The Complete Collection

Jim Henson's The Power of the Dark Crystal, vol. 1, vol. 2 and vol. 3

Jim Henson's Beneath the Dark Crystal, vol. 1 and vol. 2

Jim Henson's Shadows of the Dark Crystal by J. M. Lee (book 1)

Jim Henson's Song of the Dark Crystal by J. M. Lee (book 2)

Jim Henson's Tides of the Dark Crystal by J. M. Lee (book 3)

Jim Henson's Flames of the Dark Crystal by J. M. Lee (book 4)

The music featured in this episode includes:


Fossils by Kyle Preston
Shimmer by Krackatoa
Under an Ending Sun by Krackatoa
Mad Flutes of Strange Incensed Lands by Javier Frisco
Edge of the Wastelands by Tri-Tachyon
Bewitched Hell by Damiano Baldoni
Courtship Melody by Sidhartha
Elio Contro Atlante by Damiano Baldoni
Bodhidharma at Shaolin by The Gateless Gate
Harph Heaven by Lobo Loco
Bodhi Ambient by Daniel Birch
Tannhauser Gate by Tri-Tachyon
Le Dernier by Blear Moon
Lemon Lime by Breyvn

Theme music X-Files Theme Parody by Mallon Khan. 

If you have any feedback or review suggestions, please contact us!

If you're liking the show, please review it on your favorite podcatcher application.

Ep. 27: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (Netflix/TV)

 6.0/7.0

Welcome to episode 27 of the show!  This time around we are excited to bring you a review of the Netflix original series the "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina" created by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa based on his comic of the same name.  The name of the show has been affectionately shortened to the acronym "CAOS".  Our review will cover the initial first 10 episodes of season one released in October 2018 and the holiday special episode released in December 2018.  The second half of season one will drop on Netflix on April 5th!  The show stars Kiernan Shipka, Miranda Otto, Lucy Davis, Chance Perdomo, Michelle Gomez, Ross Lynch, Richard Coyle, Jaz Sinclair, Lachlan Watson, Tati Gabrielle and Gavin Leatherwood.

The show has some wonderful writers with good representation of women and LGBTQ writers among the staff.  Some of the writers also identify as pagan which isn't always the case among these types of shows.  One of the writers, Joshua Conkel identifies as a witch and is a practitioner of Kentucky Appalachian granny magic.  He has recently made the rounds on some pagan podcasts including The Witch Wave and Modern Witch to promote the show.  He was also interviewed by iHorror and you can read the article here.  Joshua wrote the necromancy episode on the show along with writer M.J. Kaufman.

The show has a wonderful 70's witchcraft feel and aesthetic and you can read further about "The Seventies Witch" at the New World Witchery blog.  Please be sure to also check out the rest the blog and podcast at New World Witchery which is chockfull of information regarding American folk tales and witchcraft.

Ep. 26: Requiem series (2018)

 6.0/7.0

 

The dark half of the year is upon us, at least for those of us who live in the northern hemisphere and we wanted to usher it in with a review episode that embodied the mystery, magic and Gothic deliciousness of the season.  We chose the 2018 BBC series Requiem which is currently streaming on Netflix because it had an abundance of these elements as well as some truly wonderful depictions of spirits both local and otherworldly.  The series takes place in beautiful Wales, a land steeped in bewitching Celtic culture and lore which in our opinion is the perfect setting for this story.

For this special Samhain episode, I am joined by my former co-host Sabrina Khan for a fun exploration of some of the major paranormal themes and magical elements of Requiem!  We hope you tune in and enjoy the episode as much as we had fun creating it for you.  We also announce the winner of the free email tarot reading so stay tuned for that at the end of the episode!  As always, we have a few extras for you in these show notes.