Hello magical friends, especially my wonderful patrons who make these interviews possible! I’m your hostwitch Bess and this is episode 121 of WZRD Radio.
Today we’re diving into the history of the one and only House of Black! She’s got some amazing stories to tell, but first how about some amazing music?
We’re starting with “Detention Sucks” from All Aboard the Knight Bus.
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That was All Aboard the Knight Bus with “Detention Sucks,” “Rescue Mission” from Back to the Burrow, and the Blast Ended Skrewts and their “Reducto.”
Time for the interview!
And today I am talking with Erin Pyne of the House of Black. Welcome to the show.
Erin: Hello. Thank you very much for having me.
I am so excited about this.
Erin: <laugh>
Before we started recording, you said it had been such a long time since you did wizard rock, but actually, you were one of the performers at WZRDFest.
Erin: That’s true. <laugh> I suppose I meant, uh, such a long time since I’ve done, uh, a Harry Potter convention with wizard rock. But yes, we did the WZRDFest and, um, I also perform every summer for tour groups that come to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. And so, they go to a Universal Studios hotel, and they’ve rented out a whole space, and I perform there with, uh, other wizard rockers sometimes that come and help out. <laugh>
I had no idea! Wh– why have I not known about this?
Erin: Because it’s for like private tour groups. So actually, they’re tour groups that come in from Canada, specifically on a Wizarding World of Harry Potter tour. So they come to Universal and it’s all themed and they do a whole bunch of fun activities. They play quidditch, like out in the grass, um, of the hotel. They have like special desserts and they do wand making. And then their big entertainment is a wizard rock show on one of the nights of their tour. So that’s me <laugh>. And um
That’s incredible!
Erin: Yeah. And then, um, we’ve done it for a few years now and I always invite friends to come and help out whenever they can. So we’ve had like the Blibbering Humdingers and, uh, Draco and the Malfoys and my own band that I’ve put together. It’s basically just a nice rhythm section from my other band, the Great American Big Band. So they’ve come out and played as well. Jill Michelle, who’s a poet also, and she is usually a vendor at the Harry Potter conventions, and she is the, um, <tsk> what is her shop name? She’s gonna kill me for forgetting this for right now, but it’s something like the, um, Mysterious House Elves or some– or Midnight, that’s it. The Midnight House Elves. And so, she plays the ukulele and sings really well and knows a ton of wizard rock songs, and so she comes out and sings as well. So Jill and I will be performing, uh, this summer for the groups.
That’s incredible, and I had no idea.
Erin: <laugh>
Um, but I guess probably we should backtrack a little.
Erin: Sure.
Because, while I’ve seen you perform, I don’t know anything about your history with wizard rock. Where did it all begin?
Erin: Um, it all began at the Harry Potter conventions. So, I started going to conventions when they first started here in Orlando in 2001. It was the very first Harry Potter convention, I believe it’s called Nimbus. It’s a long time ago. And then after that we had, um, oh man, Lumos in Las Vegas, and that is where Harry and the Potters debuted. That was their very first ever concert for the fandom. Oh, no, sorry, the Witching Hour in Salem, Mass! That was the Harry and the Potters’ first concert. And after that was the Las Vegas convention the next year. So then Harry and the Potters performed along with Draco and the Malfoys and the Remus Lupins and the Whomping Willows joined in and their first concerts. So then after that, it kind of snowballed where just, um, lots of fans were super inspired, wrote a bunch of their own songs.
People started posting music on, um, you know, on their different band sites on the internet. And it was really, really fun. So I, in the beginning wasn’t doing wizard rock. I was actually making Harry Potter fan films and showing them at conventions and writing Harry Potter fan fiction and hosting, you know, different Harry Potter things. I ran the Orlando Harry Potter Club for 13 years. So we always had big events, but, um, I traveled all over the place to go to all these Harry Potter conventions. So in 2006, I started writing my first Harry Potter songs, and I do, did not play an instrument except I could play guitar very poorly. So <laugh>, I decided that I was going to go with my strengths and write music online, um, and create, uh, dance music. So I decided to call my band The House of Black because it was house music.
And so my first song was, um, “Potter Addict,” which was all about how Harry Potter is my drug of choice, <laugh> And how as a fandom we’re all kind of addicted to Harry Potter. So then my first performance was at Wrockstock, which if you’ve never heard of Wrockstock, it was basically summer camp for Harry Potter fans, <laugh>. And we all went to this amazing campgrounds out in the woods where there was ama awesome cabins, and it was just nonstop wizard rock all day. And all night tons of bands came, and fans came and everybody just performed and hung out in the cabins and went to concerts. It was so cool, <laugh>. So, um, that’s where I performed my first wizard rock, was at a Wrockstock. And then after that, I, uh, was invited to play amongst many other awesome bands, um, including the, um, first time anyone had seen the Ministry of Magic band perform was at Terminus in Chicago and, um, at Wrock Chicago. And so it was kind of like a big wrock show– showcase before the convention actually started. So I got to do my first actual show at Wrock Chicago, and it was awesome.
So obviously this is a wizard rock show, and I will be coming back to all of that.
Erin: <laugh>
But I wanna backtrack for a minute. The fan films, what kind of stuff, are they still out there?
Erin: They are probably still out there on YouTube somewhere. So I started with a friend of mine who asked me to make costumes because I used to sew tons of wizard robes for everybody in the club. And at one of the conventions we played quidditch so I sewed quidditch robes for all of my teammates when we played <laugh>. And so he’s first asked me if I would help him create costumes for the movie, and I was like, “oh, yes.” And then I ended up trying to, you know, helping with finding location and helping finding actors and getting all involved <laugh> in everything. Um, so that one was called “Sirus Black and The Secret Keeper.” And it’s the story of obviously Sirius Black, confronting Peter Pettigrew in the alleyway, and then Peter blowing up all the muggles and escaping, leaving behind a finger. So it was really fun <laugh> to, uh, film that.
And it was very short, you know, maybe five minute movie, which I showed at, um, several different Harry Potter, uh, conventions. And the, um, creator of that went on to create other films like fandom films like “The Dork of the Rings,” um, and a couple other fun things that were great in one of his Lord of the Rings films. I actually played Glad-wrap-real <laugh>. So it was basically Galadriell with a lot of Glad wrap in the costume. And then, um, the second film then my friend and I did, um, he was the cinematographer I kind of wrote and directed it, and we filmed it at Rollins College here in Or–, uh, Winter Park in near Orlando because it just had gorgeous grounds and in their, in the university library, then the bookshelves actually move. So you can get a really cool, um, we could get really cool shots once you hit the button and then all the bookshelves move to the side, so it looks magical. And that one is called “the Marauders’ Worst Memory”. And so that took us all the way back and we, it was a Marauders era film, so it was the, the scene where the Marauders are plotting against Snape and then they attack Snape, lift him upside down.
And Lily gets really mad, and I actually did auditions at a high school and the kids were very excited and I got just amazing actors to be in it. They were really, really, really incredible performers to play the, the Marauders. So that was fun, and everybody had so much fun, they wanted to do it again. So this time we created an even longer film, and this one’s called “The Potter Prophecy.” And we filmed this one in a pub and um, on a set that we built at the high school where we built the interior of the home of Godric’s Hollow. And “The Potter Prophecy” showcases the whole prophecy. So Trelawney giving the prophecy to Dumbledore, Snape overhearing the whole thing, and then Voldemort attacking the Potters at their house and then ha you know, Harry foiling them and then Hagrid coming to rescue Harry and confronting Sirius Black at the house. So one of my favorite scenes is where it’s all the, the Marauders in the pub together before all of this goes down where James is going to pick Sirius to be his secret keeper. And then Sirius convinces James, no, no, you’ve gotta pick Peter. Who would suspect him? And so the four boys, uh, the four men, I should say they’re all 21 years old <laugh>. So they, uh, they all have a drink and say their goodbyes for the last time.
Brutal
Erin: <laugh>. And so we showed that at different Harry Potter conventions and, um, several wizard rockers did music for that. In fact, Oliver Boyd and the Remembralls created a gorgeous song for that, uh, oh, about the Marauders, and it’s on some of his albums as well. It’s really good. I love that song. And then for the other one, for, um, “The Marauders Worst Memory,” then I believe who did the song for that? Remus Lupins did the song for “The Marauders Worst Memory.” So that’s, he wrote his song, ‘The Marauders Worst Memory” for that movie. And then the first one, Sirius Black and the Secret Keeper, the Ministry of Magic. I wrote the song and then the Ministry of Magic took it, improved on it and recorded it for the end credits of that movie. So there’s wizard rock, original wizard rock in all three fan films. <laugh>,
You’re gonna have to find those links and send them to me. I’m, I’m having some trouble, but that sounds really exciting.
Erin: Sure, yeah. I mean, we’re talking videos that are, you know, over 10 years old, 15 years old now, <laugh> . Wow.
But they’re out there somewhere and I want them!
Erin: They’re out there in the world and I’ll help you find them.
Thank you.
Erin: <laugh>
So you’ve worked some amazing people, been to some incredible events, seen wondrous sights. Uh, what kinda stories might you have to share from those?
Erin: I have so many amazing wizard rock memories. I would have to say one of my absolute favorite conventions was in New Orleans. Um, the Phoenix Rising Convention, that’s where we, you know, had a huge quidditch competition out in the field. It was really fun. And the wizard rockers performed on Bourbon Street, and it was really amazing. And, uh, Amy Tenbrink had put together this incredible, um, concert that was awesome. So it was just a huge party. Um, everyone had a wonderful time and it’s memories that people talk about. Another amazing event that I did out of New Orleans, uh, was Wrock the Boat, which was the wizard rock cruise put together by Patty Bevin, and it was so epic. So it was probably six or seven bands including, um, House of Black Draco and the Malfoys. Um, oh my gosh, I can’t, I I can’t remember all the bands right now.
Um, but there was a bunch of us, um, on the, on the boat, on the cruise, and then about 300 fans. And we took over a bunch of the different like clubs and rooms and just did wizard rock concerts through every single night. And the rest of the time everybody’s just hanging out in the pool. And cosplaying. So, um, there was a guy who was, um, there cosplay Snape, and he just full on Snape wig in the pool standing there looking miserable. And it was hysterical <laugh>, it was awesome. Um, and I generally cosplayed McGonagall and my best friend Patty cosplayed Trelawney. And so we would walk around the cruise ship as McGonagall and Trelawney most of the time. It was great. And it was all around Halloween, so we even had a Halloween night where we dressed up people, dressed up in anything except wizards. So I believe I was Trinity from the Matrix <laugh>. So Wrock the Boat was great. It was probably the strangest wizard rock concert I’d ever been to because the boat was literally rocking. So we did in fact, wizard rock this boat, and Draco and the Malfoys, uh, were playing an acoustic set, and the boat was rocking so much that the whole audience was just swaying back and forth the whole time, <laugh>. And I’m like, I don’t know how they’re playing through this. It is crazy. But, um, I’ll send you some photos from Wrock the Boat. It was really fun.
Please do. That sounds… Slightly more terrifying now that you’ve told me about it.
Erin: <laugh> Oh, I’ll tell you a really fun one. So, uh, I was a theme park designer for the Wizarding World of Harry Potter through 2008 to 2011. And when we were doing, um, you know, towards the opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, um, Hogsmeade, then a bunch of the movies stars and stuff were coming. And so I actually got to have dinner with Tom Felton and while we were there, then I gave him an album of Draco and the Malfoys <laugh> and called up Brian on the phone. I said, “Hey, guess who’s on the phone with me?” He’s like, who? I’m like, “Tom Felton, say hi!” <Laugh>. So Tom got to talk to, um, Brian from Draco and the Malfoys, and it was really, really cool. And then I, at the same time, I was a dolphin trainer at Discovery Cove, that was my full-time job.
And then Tom Felton came to Discovery Cove with his, um, girlfriend at the time, who was also a, um, cast member from the Harry Potter films. And so they came to swim with the dolphins, and then Tom saw me there and he is like, “Hey, whatcha doing here?” I’m like, “I work here too.” He’s like, “okay.” And then later that summer, then I went to England and got to tour the set of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows while they were filming And they were filming the wedding scene that day. So everybody was there except for some of the professors. So sadly, Maggie Smith and Alan Rickman were not there, but everybody was there. And so I’m outside the cafeteria when everybody’s at lunch and the cutest thing, all the Weasleys were sitting together at a table and I’m like, “oh my gosh, you guys are all actually family.” And they’re like, “yeah, we are.” And then Tom Felton walked up and he saw me. He is like, “what in the world are you doing here?” I’m like, “I’m everywhere!” He goes “You are everywhere.” It was funny.
That sounds incredible.
Erin: But so we know for sure that Tom Felton knows about wizard rock and he does because he’s attended several different conventions and he’s, you know, gone to wizard rock shows. So he’s always been super supportive of the fandom and loving the fandom. So, which is- and wizard rock, which is great.
So I realized normally I make, uh, an extra point of asking how you chose your band name, and you said you chose House of Black because it was house music.
Erin: Right.
But why the Black family? Was it, were you feeling a little evil or?
Erin: Yes. So I had decided that I wanted to, um, you know, do something a little bit different and, uh, you know, just wear, I want, you know, I wanted to wear black and I wanted to wear a corset and do a little, a little bit more of a Bellatrix style of outfit, um, but not necessarily be a, a dark wizard, right? So I was kind of neutral with the House of Black. But yeah, so I wanted, I wanted a bit more darkness there. And then I actually wrote, um, a song from the point of view of the actual House of Black, the house itself, because all the wizard rockers were always writing from the point of view of their bands, including like the Whomping Willows. He always wrote from the point of view of the whomping of the, the tree, he is the tree. So I thought, okay, I’ll try this. I’m gonna write a, a song from the point of view of the house itself. So that’s my one song, the House of Black.
Speaking of songs you’ve written, as a non-standard musician, not singer-songwriter, guitar, microphone. Talk to me about your song creation process. How did that all work?
Erin: All right, um, well, since I’m basically a writer first, I would tend to write the lyrics first, um, and create what I wanted the song to be. Um, and then I would get on my songwriting program, which had, you know, hundreds of what are called midi tracks. So drum tracks, guitar tracks, you know, keyboard tracks, mu– just all and then all kinds of, uh, beat tracks. And so I would just sit there and listen to tracks for hours and puzzle piece a song together using all the different beats and tracks. And <laugh> the funny thing, and Scott from the Blibbering, Humdingers <laugh> pointed this out, he is like, “why are all of your songs the same tempo in the beginning? Like your, you know, your first ever songs?” And I’m like,” because I had no idea how to change the Beats thing from 120 in the music program.” I did not know how to make it faster or slower. That is why all the beats are 120 in the first few songs I did <laugh>
It became your signature.
Erin: Right? I was learning how to do it all as I did it.
What program were you using?
Erin: Oh my goodness, this is very old. It’s disc, it was discs called, I think it was literally called like Music Maker 2.0, um, for Windows <laugh>. And then you could go online and download free midi tracks. And there’s actually sites where people create things, upload it ‘here free to use these beats, these tracks, this keyboard lick, this guitar lick.’ And so people just upload ’em onto these big sites and then other people download and start mixing music. So that’s kind of a, a really fun open share kind of thing. It’s great.
It sounds really cool.
Erin: So I would down–, I would just listen to tracks for hours and hours and then just put, put things together, <laugh>.
That sounds complicated.
Erin: Yeah, it’s complicated. And then when I wanted a very specific sound, then you can use, um, you can plug in like a u uh, um, a USB keyboard into your computer, and then you can plunk it out. You can plunk out the actual tune you want and create your own midi track. And so for some things then I would do that. And did I know how to play piano? No, <laugh>. You plunk it out how you want it, you use your ear. I would use my ear and just plunk out the tune that I wanted, and then it would, you know, go into the computer and then I can edit it and, um, create it how I wanted it.
So then were all your performances to backing tracks, or did you have live bands?
Erin: Yes. So my, um, almost all my concerts are to the backing tracks of the, you know, house style music. But I did have a few acoustic songs. So, um, like I said, I could play guitar poorly, so you know, I have like a four chord song, you know, it’s like, okay, four chords, the Beatles did it. So can I. So, um, I have “My Boyfriend is a Death Eater,” and that is a acoustic guitar song. And, um, during shows then I would get bands to play along. So sometimes, um, Fred from Fred Lives would play guitar and I would sing the song or, um, the Blibbering Humdingers would do guitar and someone would be on drums, and so we could create a whole band and, you know, perform this song. Um, I also have another song that I would do on acoustic and I could play it because it was slow and sad. So it’s called “Hedwig Lives,” and it’s, it’s my, uh, you know, my fan story head canon of how Hedwig survived <laugh>.
I had a listener send me an entire zine around that premise.
Erin: Nice.
Here’s our next music break. Go check in on your compilation collaborators while Chasing Quaffles serenades us with “Why Have One Cute Boy When You Can Have Two.”
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That break started with Chasing Quaffles and “Why Have One Cute Boy When You Can Have Two,” continued with “Operation Kill Dumbledore” from Dementor’s Kiss, and closed with DJ Luna Lovegood’s “Firenze’s Advice to Luna.”
Let’s hear more from Erin.
So my patrons had a really unusual question for you.
Erin: Mm-hmm.
They discovered an interesting pattern with the Black family, and that is that there are more wizard rock bands named after the family as a whole, rather than Sirius and the Blacks <laugh>, uh, you know, Bella and the Blacks. Or… Why do you think that is?
Erin: Well, I think that the House of Black has many characters in it. And the great thing about, uh, and it’s a family and the great thing about this family is it can go either way. So Sirius and other members of the family, you know, went against the family and became good. There’s so much you can sing about there. And then you can also go the other way. The Black Sisters are just fabulous baddies, right? <laugh>, so they’re great to sing about too. And so if you have three girls in your band, then I think it’s, you know, a no-brainer to be the Black Family Sisters and/or Cousins. But I don’t know. The House of Black is just very interesting because they have this extreme darkness in their family, and they’re kind of like the Malfoys, you know, they’re just this, um, a family that believes that they are greater than everyone else because of their wizarding history, their wizarding blood, and they just have so much pride in who they are as a tight-knit family that, um, I think it’s interesting to, to think about that dynamic of how close they are in their wickedness <laugh>, and that’s what makes Sirius special, you know?
And who knows, like if he hadn’t met James, I mean, what might have happened to Sirius Black? He may have ended up having to become a bad guy too. He could have ended up as a death eater as easily as Snape if he hadn’t had that support from his friends. And so that then becomes the family that we choose versus the family that we got, which is another great thing to sing about. Another wonderful story, especially within our fandom. I know that a lot of people in our fandom, you know, uh, in the early days anyway, felt like outsiders. And coming into the Harry Potter fandom felt like coming into a family, felt like coming home to a Harry Potter convention. We’d all come to the conventions and go, welcome home, welcome back. And everybody greeted each other with hugs and just so much love and acceptance and kindness. And, um, and I think that that’s part of, you know, this is more kind of Marauders, I suppose, than the Black family, but Sirius is a part of it. I loved watching people who would cosplay Sirius Black. So I was inspired, so I cosplayed as Sirius at one of the conventions, <laugh>.
So maybe it’s something about the, uh, the relationships inside the family that draw musicians rather than the individuals.
Erin: I think so. I mean, yeah, the individuals, they’re all very compelling. You know, Bellatrix LeStrange is very cool. Uh, Narcissa is a great character. And another one of the, you know, the power of mother’s love is stronger message because in the end, she cared about Draco more than anything else, more than her politics, more than her husband, more than her own life. She cared about her son, which I think was, um, really powerful for me. And I wasn’t even a mother yet, <laugh>, you know, and it was still very powerful for me. Um, so I think that the, the, um, Black family has just extremely compelling characters, but also, yeah, a connection between them that is really strong. Plus they look cool, you know? They just have awesome outfits and wigs, <laugh>. So it’s really fun to dress up as all of the, the House of Black family members. <laugh>
You can’t deny the aesthetic.
Erin: That’s right. <laugh>, villains always get the cool costumes.
It’s too true. So thinking back to those early years, maybe a little bit ago, uh, what were things that the community did that made you feel like you could write your music, like you could perform on those stages? What were the encouraging things that you met?
Erin: The best thing about it that was so encouraging is that when you watched other people perform, it did not matter if it was one person who was just learning guitar or it was a full band of seasoned performers. Everybody was loved, everybody got cheered, everyone was, um, you know, encouraged and people in fact, more so than their musicality, their lyrics is what everybody wanted to actually hear. So yes, you’ve got the bands where you know, you’re jumping and you’re screaming and you’re like, woo! And you know, they’re throwing bacon at the audience and it’s a really big crazy show and it’s always amazing. But then there’s also just this one person who has a flute and they play the flute and they sing about something that means that mean it meant a lot to them. A character that meant a lot to them, like Luna or someone.
And it’s so heartfelt and it’s so loving and adorable and you can’t help but just go up to this person afterwards and give ’em a huge hug and tell ’em how awesome they were. Because it takes a lot of bravery to stand up in front of a bunch of people and showcase something that you’ve made yourself. It’s very scary. But within this fandom, different from other places I’ve been, right? Like I’ve been to Nerdapalooza and I’ve seen people get booed off stage, <laugh> when they’re just there trying to, trying to do their thing. But at this place in Harry– within the Harry Potter community, it was always so much love. Um, so then it encourage you, okay, I can do this, you know, and even if I’m terrible, at least people won’t tell me to my face <laugh>, they’ll still gimme hugs and go, “good effort. A for effort.” <laugh>
Now we still have new wizard rockers joining all the time. Including people who are just, you know, thinking about it, they’re not sure they might need a boost. What kind of advice would you have for them?
Erin:<laugh>, I guess I would say, you know, don’t worry about making sure it all sounds incredible and professional, right? I remember the Ministry of Magic, which people considered, you know, one of the more high quality sounds because they had, you know, done professional music before, but they released a video of them recording, and it was literally them in a closet with a blanket over their heads singing into a microphone, <laugh>. And it was awesome. So this, you can do it wherever you are in your room, in a closet. You just put a blanket over your head and start singing into that microphone into your computer. I would say if you’re gonna invest in anything, invest in a microphone so that you can try to get the best quality for your voice. Um, so that it doesn’t sound like my first recordings. I literally was singing at my laptop.
I had no microphone, so it sounded a little bit far away, you know, as if I was maybe singing to you from across the room <laugh>. But just get started and don’t worry about production value, you know, just, um, just, just do it and put it out there for people. Now the online world is different from the in fandom convention world, and no matter what you do, it doesn’t matter how amazing it is, people might troll you and they might say negative things and you have to just forget them. The greatest singers in the world get like the worst comments coming at them. So just completely ignore all of it. Delete, delete, delete <laugh>, get rid of the comments, just get rid of all of that and just focus on those positive things that people say. So if you’re going online, just be aware. There could be mean comments and you just have to let that just bounce right off of you, like cast yourself a patronus charm and say, “nothing’s getting in. These dementors are out of here. They’re not getting into me and they’re not gonna make me sad”. So do your music, cast your patronus charm and put it out there in the world and you will definitely get love for it because Harry Potter fans always want more content. <laugh>.
And for anyone who’s considering taking that dive, Wizard Rock Sampler, uh, submissions are due at the end of this month. So you’ve still got a couple weeks.
Erin: Awesome.
So apparently you’re doing annual concerts very close to my home. What else, uh, are you working on these days?
Erin: Um, well my full-time job is, I’m still a theme park design rider, so I write narratives for shows and attractions and sometimes I’ll, you know, people go, oh, you’re a rollercoaster rider. I’m like, no writer. I write the stories of the rides <laugh> and the queue line experience before you go on the ride and the media for whatever ride you’re going on in your pre–in the pre-show. Um, so I still do all of that and, um, my company has been working on just so many experiences and we’re very excited. You know, Epic Universe just opened, so lots of projects over there that are open and we’re very excited about them, even if we can’t talk about them. You know, I still continue to work for all the theme parks, lots of museums, aquariums, zoos, you know, all kinds of places. But, um, on the side, I’m also a book writer, so I love writing books.
I do that in my spare time whenever I have a chance. Then I’m always working on a novel <laugh>. I actually just published a novel just last month, and it is called “Scandalous, the Secret Diaries of Jane Austen’s Bad Girls.” So if you are a big fan of Jane Austen or Bridgerton, then this is a book of six stories, one for each of Jane Austen’s books, and I picked one of the bad girls that Jane Austen always writes so well to tell her story from her point of view in a diary form. So chapter one is all about Lydia and how she develops her relationship with Wickham and how they run off together and everything that occurs in, you know, in that adventure within the book Pride and Prejudice. So if you love Jane Austen, go check out “Scandalouss. It’s a really fun read. Let’s see, what else? I’m working on a new book now. Um, it is a middle grade Supernatural thriller, hopefully a series. So we’ll see what happens with that.
Do you think we’re likely to see any House of Black on any of the compilations this summer?
Erin: Ooh, possibly, yes. I’ll have to look up the submission dates and work on something.
Excellent. We love to hear it.
Erin: Great.
Let’s pause for the final music break. This is Dobby and the House Elves with “The Knight Bus.”
~*~
That was Dobby and the House Elves and “The Knight Bus,” “Lily” from Dobby kills Hedwig, and Dungbombs Rock singing “Hold On.”
And here is the last bit of my conversation with Erin of House of Black.
Thank you so much for talking with me today. Uh, I learned so much. I can’t wait to watch all of those films.
Erin: <laugh>
Where can WZRD listeners find you and your books and your music online?
Erin: For the House of Black music? It’s all posted up on BandCamp, and I believe it’s all free. There was only one song that I was charging a dollar for back in the day, and that was the LeakyCon theme song, because that was for a charity where, um, all proceeds of the, you know, dollar sale of the song would go to the Lumos Foundation. Um, and that was a really fun song to do with, uh, Stace from Swish and Flick. BandCamp is where you can find the House of Black music. And for books just go on Amazon and you can look up “Scandalous: the Secret Diaries of Jane Austen’s Bad Girls” under the pseudonym A.L. Ady. So Jane Austin’s pen name was A Lady because she was never allowed to put her name on any of her books. So I decided to take her pen name as A.L. Ady <Laugh>. But my other books you can find under Erinn Pyne or E.A. Pine, so a long time ago I wrote “The Ultimate Guide to the Harry Potter Fandom,” which is still out there. It’s from 2010. So if you read it, it’s a bit outdated, but, um, it really document, it’s like this thick, uh, I mean it’s, you know, two inches thick and it really documents the fandom and how awesome we are. I was gonna say we were, but it’s how awesome we are. <laugh>
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And now, magical friends, here’s the House of Black!
Erin: Thank you so much for having me, and I hope you all enjoy listening to me perform The House of Black.
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