In the Event That…You Can’t Wait for October 31

By Annamarya Scaccia

Eastern Haunters Horror Convention

Sat., May 3, 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. (convention), 8 p.m.-mid. (costume party); Sun., May 3, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; $25-$60, Sheraton Great Valley Hotel, 707 E. Lancaster Ave., 610-524-5500, easternhauntersconvention.com

If you’ve been known to pull out the spiderwebs in early September, then the Eastern Haunters Horror Convention is your decaying candy land. Organized by haunt vets Michael Brunner and Rob Kocher, it’s the first of its kind on the East Coast.

Perfect for haunted-house owners and the average Halloween enthusiast alike, the two-day horror fest will feature fright professionals, costumes, props, art, music and more. Among the swarm of vendors are spookymagic.com, Rotten Jack’s Creep Shack, Fright Factory and Eastern State Penitentiary. Seminars will be offered on topics such as haunt decorating, building and running attractions and the art of gore, while a makeup contest will determine who already has spooky skills.

If you enjoy the occasional monster mash, carve out Saturday night for the Cadaver’s Cotillion, the convention’s undead version of a Mardi Gras costume ball. There’ll be Cajun and Creole grub, raffles and a contest for the best-dressed attendees. We knew rotting skin was coming back in 2008.

Review: SAY HI “THE WISHES AND THE GLITCH”

When Eric Elbogen relocated his Brooklyn, NY home to the foggy, rain-drenched streets of Seattle, WA, something just happened to change in him. Maybe it’s to be expected when you uproot your life for a whole new coast, but it seems the architect behind indie pop outfit Say Hi is taking the shift pretty well. The Wishes and the Glitch is a charming effort at reestablishment – puppy-eyed vocals that sway over jumpy synths map each of his movements as if they were completely new to him. Tracks like “Magic Beans and Truth Machines,” “Spiders,” and “Back Before We Were Brittle” fall on fast-motion digital folk, with Elbogen’s low-key singing tip-toeing over blushes of whimsical guitars. But by far, the best tune on Wishes… is the most disturbing. Starting off innocently enough with electronic womps and nourishing harmonies, “Toil and Trouble” is a disconcerting stalker manifesto on the rules of love that plays on nervous chords tripping over themselves. “She’s gonna love me. Oh yes, she will” Elbogen says with a sneering smirk. That tune aside Elbogen’s new persona isn’t that hard to love.

–Annamarya Scaccia

Review: THE OAKS “SONGS FOR WAITING”

It seems that The Oak’s sophomore release, Songs for Waiting¸ can only be expected when considering what it came from – Oaks’ band mate Ryan Costello’s years spent in the Central Afghan Mountains working with returned refugees and his devotion to social work. The album draws from his experiences in those passing years and from that, something tribal, something feminine is drawn from it. Just listen to tracks like “Pike Country,” “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter,” and “Here I am Again.” They’re a hodgepodge of chiming bells, soft synths, longing trombones, jangling guitars, trippy drums, kept organs and muffled vocals that embody a neat sensuality. Unfortunately, while these nostalgic sounds can be hypnotizing, they tend to err on the side of agonizingly long (“Song for Waiting,” “Masood.”) Overall, Songs for Waiting is an instrumental-heavy, touching, jazz-folk effort that can be the equivalent to a mildly impressive soundtrack for spiritual enlightenment.

–Annamarya Scaccia [March 26, 2008]