On October 3oth, three amazing artists joined together to play a celebration for the Dead at the Alombrados Oasis of Ordo Templi Orientis in New Orleans.
The opening act was Eliza Rickman. You can find her work here:
Eliza is an accomplished pianist, composer, and singer/songwriter. Her own website describes how, “Religious themes pervade Rickman’s work—her album is, after all, titled ‘O, You Sinners’. She is the daughter of a pastor, and started playing piano in church at the age of 13. But like one of her great influences- Nick Cave- her writing belies ambivalence about religion. Good and evil; love, both God’s love and carnal love; sinners and saints; desire and repentance, all find a place in Rickman’s songs. They lurk behind the scrim- whatever stage she sets. The coin of her realm is stamped with the will of God, and whether you are a doubter or a believer you must deal in her currency if you want her to ferry you ashore. “O, you sinners” she sings, “hear me.” And how could we not listen?” Eliza wooed them with her bitter sweet lullabies and powerful sense of grace and performative intimacy.
The next act was a highly popular and intriguing New Orleans Performance artist, Vinsantos, who engaged the crowd with piano hypnotism and a biting drag aesthetic. He also decorated the stage and altars with his own original sculpture and puppetry. You can find out more about this striking artist here:
The final act was Jill Tracy. Whose website is linked here:
This evening, Jill notably made a call to channel the spirit of the Alombrados Oasis Temple and produced an original song for the evening honoring the deceased. She is also notable for having scored the final requiem on the closing credits of Showtime’s hit murder drama, Dexter. Jill has also worked in conjunction with the Mutter Museum, Bauhaus’s David J, and has continually toured the Musical Seance with Violinist, Paul Mercer.