DJ Nocturna Presents: Camera Obscura, The “Dark Chamber”…

By George D’range

(Published in the April Issue of The 808 Scene Zine)

This article was written under a full moon…
In the beginning there was only darkness: Black, mysterious, and seductive. It became known as the nighttime, that special time when we can get away with the most mischief and mayhem. But as we all know, partying all night is an exhausting affair, even for the most stoic devotee of darkness. So of course, daytime had to be created to even things out, and give night clubbers and vampires a chance to rest! And so, DJ Nocturna said: “Let there be a Feast of Friends!" -every Saturday night from 6 to 9 On 90.3 KTUH FM- a kind of broadcast Sabbath for the dark at heart. But of course, there also needs to be a social gathering, a thematic event for her Gothic coven to connect, dance to goth and darkwave music, and otherwise hook-up with other likeminded worshipers of the night. Someplace nice and DARK… And so, the Goddess of darkness said: “Let there be a Dark Mask Ball!”
Enter Camera Obscura, held the First Saturday of every month at Next Door at 43 North Hotel Street. Camera Obscura is Latin for "dark chamber", and March 1st kicked off the latest season of this monthly costume-thematic event, held on first Saturdays. So I donned my own dark mask, put on my fangs, and fastened on my cape to see what it's all about.
Adorned in their Faustian finery, coming out from their dark dwellings from around the city, Nocturna's shadow army converges, confounding the otherwise 'regular' people milling about Chinatown. It's not hard to discern the clientele of Bar 35 from that of Next Door. The people going into Next Door look a little scary, like characters out of "Eyes Wide Shut" or "The Story of 'O'", whereas the Bar 35 people just look a bit scared. But it's all a part of the thematic fun that is the difference that makes Camera Obscura a cut above the average rave or happening. Well, that, and the mature and courteous nature of Nocturna's throng of loyal friends. As pointed out by Kawehi Haug in TGIF, this is a discreet, no-touch dance crowd, definitely not for random strangers looking to get their freak on with other people they don't even know. But in order to truly appreciate Camera Obscura, one really has to experience it first hand.
As I immersed myself in this world of night, I was greeted by Nocturna's regular friendly doorman Ray, and walked into the candle-lit and cavernous atmosphere of the antique landmark building. The evening kicked off with the dark, 80s retro grooves of DJ Modboy, who was followed by the impeccable tastes of our host Nocturna, and the expert goth belly dancing of Michael Azure. There was also a dark mask contest during the fray with prizes for the darkest mask and most original mask coutesy of Millennium Hawaii. Tarot readings by Jill and Greg from Prosperity Corner were given, and the evening culminated in the high energy dance mixes of DJ Gary O.

Though I am not one normally known for getting my dance on, the mix was just too much to resist! I think I have rediscovered the dance sound that has always had me in it's grip, and by the time Nocturna served up the dance dub of Soft Cell's "Sex Dwarf", I was already completely lost to the dark wave beat as I lip-synced lyrics learned long ago in a nearly forgotten era! For a brief time I was there again, and it would have been very easy to forget that I actually had an article to write!

The Dark Mask Ball was the theme for just the first Camera Obscura event of this year. April's event was "A Night of Bast", an evening dedicated to the Egyptian goddess Bast or Bastet, a deity with the head of a cat, and the body of a beautiful woman, protector of cats, women and children and patron goddess of love, birth, music and dance. Appropriately, it was a fundraiser for Joey's Feline Friends, a no-kill shelter for homeless, abused and physically challenged cats. As with the Dark Mask Ball, showing up in costume true to the theme of the night gets you two bucks off the cover at the door. And the Night of Bast called for costumes resembling Bast, cats, and all things Egyptian.
May's theme will be a Victorian Ball, so break out your old corsets and stovepipe hats from the 1850s, and get ready to go retro… on the darker side! If you think you might be as dark -if not darker- than Nocturna, please point your browser to: myspace.com/djnocturna -or- myspace.com/808cameraobscura, and add to friends!

Grand Slam: Hawaii's Best and Brightest Poets Get Their Chance to Shine!

By George D'range

(Published: The March 2008 issue of The 808 Scene Zine)

Team Hawaii, Adult Division: Kealoha, Stri Longanecker, Travis T, Lyz Soto, Dar'ron Cambra
and Tui "Tui-Z" Scanlan peeking out in the foreground.

It's one thing for a writer like me to immerse myself in an event by attending and socially mingling in order to hammer out an assigned article. Actually participating as a competitor among seasoned veterans is another thing altogether! More humbling still is realizing that a large number of your fellow competitors are half my age, and much, much better at this than me. Not only was this article researched in this way, but this topic is so interactive that you, the reader, can also get involved! So start brushing up your rhymes and come to the monthly competition on the first Thursday of every month at the Hawaiian Hut located in the Ala Moana Hotel.
April 19, 7:00 PM at Kaimuki High School Youth Speaks Hawaii will be hosting "The Grand Slam", a competition of the top poets of the year. The adult class of poets will have their own Grand Slam April 3rd who took 1st place at the First Thursdays competition. So, the bad news is that any newcomers will have to wait a year for another Grand Slam. The good news is, once you see what you’re up against, you'll want a year to practice! And any young people (being younger than 18) need only contact The Youth Speaks Hawaii people online, or attend the poetry workshops held every Wednesday, 4:30 to 6:00 PM at The Arts at Mark’s Garage. There are also plans to restart the Youth Speaks slams every third Saturday, at Mark’s.
Hawaii Slam and Youth Speaks are two crucial organizations that put the resource of public, personal expression into the hands of the local community. And the spoken word movement in Hawaii and elsewhere, is a lot stronger than many people may be aware of. In fact, all one has to do is go online, to get a feel for how powerful it has become. Hawaii Slam, Youth Speaks and Girl Fest all have a strong Internet presence, as do many of their sponsors and participants. Perhaps the best place to start would be to go to the Youth Speaks Hawaii Web page, (http://www. youthspeakshawaii.org) where one can contact the organization, and also get a sense of the grand scope of the movement and the immense talent out involved! They are also readily searchable on Myspace. Back in early December I had the opportunity to attend the Youth Speaks 3rd Annual Interscholastic Slam, and it was, without a doubt, one of the most moving and educational experiences of my life.
As I inferred earlier, it's not easy for an aging writer like myself to get taken back to school by such a group of sharp young upstarts, but it was definitely an honor and a privilege I won't ever forget. The brutal honesty and raw emotions of these powerful speakers and their craft took me to places I didn't expect, some places I didn't want to go, but realized we should all visit, because these amazing young people are our future. I vowed never to refer to them as “kids” again!
So I braced myself for the prospect of attending First Thursdays and reciting, to be a fair reporter and to really get good case of stage fright on. This was on the heels of the opening of Girl Fest, where I had been treated some of the nation's best poets! Can you say nervous?
But upon arriving at the Hawaiian Hut, I was greeted by warm handshakes and hugs and the smell of my favorite incense wafting on the air, and a strange thing happened. I was suddenly in room with over 400 friends, or people I had come to think of as friends, and all the fear of judgment and evaluation melted away as poet after poet took the stage and laid bare their souls for all to see. I almost chose to “share” and not compete, (you can do that) but my sense of responsibility over-road my trepidation, and it all turned out to be one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life! I did not even place as a competitor, but it was my first time, and I did not care one bit! In the presence of such immense talent, it would have been easy to simply follow the urge to bow out before even attempting to compete, but despite those feelings, or perhaps because I chose to ignore it, I was hooked!
I will be back, and I will be attending the Grand Slam probably as a casual observer and fan, cheering on my friends and fellow poets, as the adults battle their way towards the National competition held in Madison WI, in August. Youth Speaks will be competing nationally in July, in Washington D.C.