chaosorc

If you have the opportunity to get tickets I recommend it, people drove in from multiple states for the experience. I feel fortunate to have been able to secure a ticket of my own in time.

I spend a good deal of time scrolling Instagram and over the last month and a half I started seeing advertisements for this event called Kiss of the Vampire Soirée where the DJ was Nina aka djdeathflower.

The ads read like a breath of fresh air and I was immediately curious who Nina was and why I had not heard of her before. Her story moved me because she realized she needed to leave her previous scene and take a risk, relocating to Charlotte, North Carolina and taking up a new job and getting involved in the goth scene, of starting over. A story of new beginnings and successful personal growth. And that's why I expected the event to be different.

The event was organized by Immortal Forest (immortalforestva on Instagram) run by Jay and Crystal. The Kiss of the Vampire Soirée was the first one they would host in Raleigh at the Voodoo Lounge which is upstairs and down a long hallway in the back of The Big Easy NC at 222 Fayetteville St. I posted pictures of it on Instagram if you need a visual before you attend the next one.

They put a lot of effort into the event highlights, provided a photography booth by Lacy Media, included surprises and Immortal Forest merchandise, and my favorite was a list of addresses in a section called Parking Details. I'm always worried about where I would find parking at venues I haven't been to before, and how long parking would take, then dreading the long walk from my car to the club. They had four different locations including the distance.

I parked at the first available major parking structure I found and had a little extra walk than they recommended but I felt confident when I left that I would make it into the event on time. I arrived a little bit early and I was kind of afraid I would be sitting on top of my leather jacket on the couch all night. But Jay approached me and we talked about Lynchburg and his experience with the goth scene. And as the night went on the participants at the event introduced people to each other, they also knew where people were coming from to get to the event, and were very hospitable, social, and charming.

The music and DJ set were excellent. It was great to watch djdeathflower work the turntables and the crowd. The setting was intimate and I felt like I talked to nearly everyone in the room. At one point I had to use the restroom and when I returned people were yelling, Frank's back!

I believe it was ten o'clock when they decided it was time to elect and crown the Vampire King and Queen. After they were crowned they chose their first dance as King and Queen to be Blasphemous Rumors by Depeche Mode and everyone got on the dance floor.

The event was for an eighteen plus crowd but there was also a bar. I asked for non-alcoholic drinks and was given cans of Coke on the house. The music was from a range of sources that included some of my favorites, songs I didn't expect to hear at a goth club, and a number of songs I hadn't heard before. The people at the club spent time talking to one another and mingling though because the music was so well selected there was someone on the dance floor for most of the night.

I wish they could put on this event every weekend because it would be great to see it grow into a movement with lots of new people coming in, experiencing the music and culture, getting to know other people, creating connections and friendships.

If you have the chance I recommend giving immortalforestva and djdeathflower a follow on Instagram so you'll know where to find a good time. I'm thinking about planning some trips to Charlotte to see more of their shows.