Who’s ready for Round 2 of a three-day gothic party? Last year, I attended the very first Dark Side of the Con, a dark alternative convention in New Jersey, hosted by VampireFreaks. This week, Dark Side is back and it’s darker than ever. The biggest difference this year is that VampireFreaks split with Jeff Mach after the latter was accused of a number of problematic behaviors earlier this year—so now Dark Side will be run solely by Jet and his VF team. Another big difference is that this year, I’m doing a bunch of panels! The convention is this weekend, March 16-18, at the Radisson Hotel in Piscataway, NJ. You can find more information and buy tickets at the Dark Side of the Con website. For a preview of the panels I’ll be running and the other aspects of the con that I’m looking forward to, read on!
I’ll be on four different panels at this year’s Dark Side of the Con. If you like the type of content that I post on this site, then you definitely don’t want to miss my first two panels! On Friday at 7:45pm I’m doing a panel called “The Literary Roots of Goth,” in which I’ll take you through the history of the Gothic literary movement. The next morning at 11:00am, I’m getting a little more in depth with “Gender & Sexuality in Gothic Literature.” This panel will explore the complicated relationship that this genre has had with gender and sexuality since its inception, and the way that these themes play out in individual works and the genre as a whole. For something a little more lighthearted, I’ll be moderating a “Vampires vs. Zombies” debate on Saturday at 5:00pm, in which writers MJ Brad and Tamsin Silver will argue over the merits of their preferred supernatural entity in pop culture. Lastly, you can catch me on Sunday at noon on a panel about “Corporate Goth.” There will even be some great panels at Dark Side that don’t feature me. I’m particularly excited for the “Paranormal” panel, which will be led by the Morris-Jumel Mansion’s professional paranormal investigator, Vincent Carbone.
There are a whole bunch of amazing bands that are going to be at the convention. This year, for real, I am finally going to see Ego Likeness. I keep saying that every time they’re at the same convention I am, yet somehow it never works out. This time, though, they’re a top priority. I’m also excited to get a second chance to see Xentrifuge. I was supposed to see them over the summer when they were performing in New York City but things didn’t work out, so I definitely want to catch them at Dark Side. There’s also an electro-goth-rock band called Spider Lilies, whom I had never heard of before but whose music sounds right up my alley, so I’ll definitely have to check them out! And of course, there are a few of my old favorites like Psyche Corporation and The Long Losts.
Apart from panels and performances, there are a lot of other things that will be going on over the weekend. Central to Dark Side of the Con are the DJed dance nights. Friday night, there’s two different dance parties going on: Cybertron, where the DJs from this well-known NYC club night will be spinning industrial, synthpop, and electro; and The Black Shamrock Ball, where a number of other DJs will be spinning goth, post-punk, and new wave. On Saturday night, DJs Jet and Swabby will be spinning emo, pop-punk, and 2000’s alternative for my new favorite dance event, The Black Parade. They will also be bringing back the Villains Ball and costume contest from last year. If you’re looking for me after midnight, I’ll probably be at one of these dance parties.
Will I see you at Dark Side of the Con? Are you coming to my panels? What events are you most excited for? Let me know in the comments!