The 8th Horcrux

November 3, 2009  
Filed under Entertainment

J.K Rowling’s Harry Potter series has rapidly captivated the minds of millions of children, adults and anyone in between or outside those parameters. It has gained legitimacy among the literature community despite what would be skepticism towards a children’s novel and has been compared to such classics as “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy.  The series’ commercial success, if nothing else, has been extraordinary, having made Rowling the only billionaire author. It is only logical that the large fan base is extremely enthusiastic, but an upstart movement has taken the fandom to a whole new level.

Wizard Rock, commonly shortened to “wrock,” is a term denoted simply to all artists and bands whose lyrical content is related to the Harry Potter series. While its sound can vary widely, most wrockers tend to be most influenced by normal rock. It is quite common for wrock songs to be told from certain character perspective and to be humorous in nature. This genre was founded by the highly influential group, “Harry and the Potters,” whose work has inspired many others, including but not limited to two OHS students.

Junior Paul Thomas happened to stumble upon the genre and after displaying a conceptual song to fellow junior, Trina Sieg, a wrock band quickly developed. Dubbing themselves “The 8^th Horcrux,” they became a parody band, much in the vein of “Weird Al” Yankovic, which devoted the entirety of its content to anything relating to the Harry Potter series, thus earning the status of a “wrock” band.

“I became a true fan of Harry Potter within the months that led up to the release of the sixth book. I had seen all the movies prior to that time but had never made an attempt to read the books, deeming them as too lengthy. However, after reading the first book and realizing how awesome it was in comparison to anything I had read before, I became hooked. The books definitely served as a source of escapism and—cliché as it seems—Harry Potter allowed me to become the reader I am today!” Sieg said.

For those unknowledgeable in Potter lore, a horcrux is a concept central to the sixth book, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” so to spoil it for you all, it is when a person splits their soul in half, the only known way through murdering someone, then proceeding to impart it into an object, generally inanimate, so that when one would normally die, their soul is tied to the earth and they cannot pass on to whatever the next stage of existence is. Voldemort divided his soul into seven pieces, including the soul in his body. Thus, the band itself is an entity in which Voldemort has imparted a fraction of his soul into, or at least, this is the impression one would get from the name.

“The biggest thing that stood out about the Harry Potter series, was, especially near the end of the books, the truthfully macabre actions of the antagonists. Never had I read a book where the bad guy was prepared to kill anyone who stood up to him, maim his soul, AND try to vanquish mortality. Imagine reading that when you were 10 years old! Many people will insist that the books are kiddie fodder, but to me, any book that deals with the struggle of immortality, or sacrificing your life for love is deep reading, no matter what,” Thomas said.

The 8^th Horcrux, like many of its wrocker brethren, contain lyrics that vastly range from the competitive world of the fictional sport Quidditch (“I’m On a Broom”) to more debatable topics among the fans, such as the reveal from Rowling of Dumbeldore’s sexuality (“Why’d Ya Do It, JK?). On such issues, the music reflects their opinions on the matter, but the tone is always light-hearted.

The band released its debut album, “Potterwatch!” on Oct. 22 and may be purchased for $8 through direct contact with either band member, though supply is limited. They have not performed live as of yet, but a library gig is not out of the question.

http://www.myspace.com/the8thhorcrux

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Jack Shannon

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