"Raise the Dead" by Phantom Planet

So, let's talk a little bit about witchcraft basics. I know this is going to sound crazy but I've been researching this stuff since I was like 12-years-old and practicing (in earnest) off-and-on for the last 10 years. I wouldn't call myself an expert, but I'd like to think I've learned something by now. In a typical witchcraft ritual, you'll first cast a circle - there's various ways to do this but essentially you're doing it to create a protective barrier to perform your magic. You'll draw the circle, moving in a clockwise ("deosil") direction and then  invite elemental spirits into the circle (sometimes referred to as Calling the Quarters). It helps to have items that represent each element (a candle for Fire, salt or a crystal for Earth, etc) but it's not necessary. After that, you can either invoke or evoke the gods - either a particular deity/entity you work with or one that specializes in the type of magic you're doing, e.g., calling Aphrodite/Venus for a love spell. Invocation is usually when you're asking a god/entity for the power to do something yourself and evocation is generally when you're summoning a god/entity to do something for you, as far as I understand it. There's some nuances but you can google those. Finally, it's time to raise some energy.

There's many ways to raise energy - singing, dancing, chanting, having sex, rhythmic breathing (also known as pranayama in Hindu practice), meditation/visualization, animal sacrifice - whatever meets your intent for your magical working and is in line with your practice/principles. Personally, I prefer dancing with wild abandon, because it raises a lot of energy and I can do it relatively quietly. Essentially, I'll select some songs and....dance. Not a lot of technique to it. Three songs usually does the trick. Afterwards, the air feels kind of thick and, if you have pets, they'll usually be attracted to the space. I find that, if I've done it right, I'll have five yowling cats outside the door. Don't ask me why I have five cats....it was absolutely NOT my choice. Moving on...once you feel this heaviness (you might even feel like you're in a trance-like state and/or your body is vibrating), you can do your spellwork, whatever that might be. You finish up by closing the circle, which is usually the reverse of the process I described in the beginning. And that's the gist of an occult ritual.

This song is one of my favorites to dance to when I'm raising energy. It starts slow and then after the first verse, all bets are off. By the bridge, it hits a crescendo and then it tapers off towards the end. It has a good flow, I guess is what I'm trying to say. The lyrics are about a guy trying to get his friend out of a depressive episode. His friend is in this dark place (maybe even suicidal) and it seems like he can't climb out, so the singer is trying to coax him to come out and have fun with him. They'll "raise the dead," which presumably means they're going to have a wild time. In my interpretation, the Dead refers to the depressed friend and raising him means bringing his spirits up and getting him through the darkness. Or, it could be about a guy inviting someone to actually raise the dead via the practice of necromancy. I'm down for that, too. That sounds pretty fun.

The dark is plaguing our hearts

Pumping through us and collecting in our deepest parts

Well down there it's dripping like tar

And it's stuck to your arms

And it's sticking to you too long

The time is higher than high

Something lurking in your shadow that keeps trying to hide

Oh no, want it alive

To get out, to get out, to get out of your insides

Let's return to my hypothetical "Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter" TV series that I may or may not be actually working on. In the books, she's a necromancer who works for a private investigation office. She raises corpses and asks them questions to get to the bottom of unsettled matters, which may be incredibly difficult depending on how long the person has been dead. Anita wears a suit to work - because she's a professional, god damnit! In the first book, it describes her typical work night, which involves sacrificing chickens to raise energy, so her suit is usually covered in blood and dirt by the time she returns home. For the TV series, I imagined a montage of her work night - going from graveyard to graveyard, killing chickens, climbing into graves - a rhythmic dance that, in my head, is set to "Raise the Dead" by Phantom Planet. Sometimes, when I hear songs, I see stories - and that's what I see when I hear this song. 

Cover of Anita Blake Comic Book

Phantom Planet is a favorite of mine. True to form, I discovered them because I thought the drummer was hot. That drummer, my friends, was Wes Anderson darling Jason Schwartzman. 

C'mon....Look at that face!

He left the band in 2003 but Phantom Planet still kicks ass. And that's pretty much how I find all my favorite bands. Sorry, not sorry. Video below.

"Raise the Dead" Video