BPALNewsWire

We're so excited! In this very special bonus episode of their flying-forearm-smash-hit Web show, NOBODIES WATCHING WRESTLING, the GDQOW take on GLOW, both the show from Netflix and the documentary. It's a good one. Things get real personal.

Hi everyone! We are delighted to bring you our weekly roundup of cherished news bits, not all of them terrifying.

Hi everyone, You’ve probably heard of Der Orchideengarten, the legendary German supernatural horror magazine published from January 1919 until November 1921. Our friends at Century Guild have launched a Kickstarter campaign to reproduce some of its amazing artwork—an incredible blend of gothic, romantic, and eerie. Pledge rewards include hand-pressed letterpress cards, books, and even a dedication. And, of course, gemütlichkeit. Take a look at what they hope to do.

Hello everyone! We've unveiled three more of the scents in our tribute to Neil Gaiman's Fifteen Painted Cards from a Vampire Tarot. Proceeds benefit Comic Book Legal Defense Fund! Check them out online, or sniff them in person at this Friday's L.A. Lunacy event. https://blackphoenixalchemylab.com/…/15-painted-cards-from…/ For those of you on Facebook, here's a little something fun: a quick throw of the cards! https://www.facebook.com/BlackPhoenixAlchemyLab/posts/10155728687774940 The future's smelling amazing!

Friends! If you felt left out of our summer travel plans (SDCC and Midsummer Scream were outstanding!) then perhaps the following will make it up to you: a cluster of small scent collections serving as a veritable sampler platter of the best 2017 has to offer. Firstly, the path of this month’s solar eclipse has inspired a Limited Edition series of thirteen scents, in addition to our usual Lunacy fare -- Harvest Moon 2017 to set you soaring into September, and Single Note: Honeysuckle to make sure you turn every head along the way. We’re also rolling out the long-awaited next installment of Neil Gaiman’s 15 Painted Cards From a Vampire Tarot, bringing the number of scents in this collection up to 7. These bottles, accompanied by an actual tarot card drawn by Madame Talbot, will raise funds for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Last but far from least, the latest winner of our #BPAL7WordStory contest (ENVY Edition) has finally been announced… and you’re gonna want to sniff those words. In all, that’s a gallery of 19 new creations to wander through as the world outside swelters and the sun itself threatens to go out. On Monday, 21 August 2017, all of North America will experience an eclipse of the sun, with a total eclipse stretching from Oregon to South Carolina. During this event, the moon will completely cover the sun, and the sun’s corona will extend its golden tendrils from behind a shadowed veil. Solar eclipses have been held responsible for the fall of empires, the onset of wars, the birth and death of great people, and the onset of terrible plagues and natural disasters. Is this rare and awe-inspiring event an omen? Grab your nearest soothsayer or augur; it’s big business for seers this year! This series is a paean to this once in a lifetime event: an amber-gilded sampling of the poetry, prose, notable persons, mythology, and historical accounts surrounding solar eclipses. ++ SONGS OF MIDDAY DARKNESS ALL RUINOUS DISORDERS These late eclipses in the sun and moon portend no good to us. Though the wisdom of nature can reason it thus and thus, yet nature finds itself scourged by the sequent effects. Love cools, friendship falls off, brothers divide, in cities mutinies, in countries discord, in palaces treason, and the bond cracked ’twixt son and father. This villain of mine comes under the prediction—there’s son against father. The king falls from bias of nature—there’s father against child. We have seen the best of our time. Machinations, hollowness, treachery, and all ruinous disorders follow us disquietly to our graves. Find out this villain, Edmund. It shall lose thee nothing. Do it carefully.—And the noble and true-hearted Kent banished, his offense honesty! 'Tis strange, strange. - William Shakespeare, King Lear Amber, bergamot, and honeyed saffron blackened by smoked oudh, patchouli, ti leaf, scorched thistle, leather, and yew. DISASTROUS TWILIGHT As when the Sun, new risen, Looks through the horizontal misty air, Shorn of his beams, or from behind the Moon, In dim eclipse, disastrous twilight sheds On half the nations and with fear of change Perplexes monarchs. - John Milton, Paradise Lost Star-touched blue amber, gurjum balsam, pale orris, Somalian myrrh, benzoin, red sandalwood, and ylang ylang. ECLIPSES BE Eclipses be – predicted – And Science bows them in – But do one face us suddenly – Jehovah’s watch – is wrong. - Emily Dickinson Rose amber, carnation, and clove. THE SUN HAS PERISHED …and the Sun has perished out of heaven, and an evil mist hovers over all. - Homer, the Odyssey An evil mist hovers over all: Tunisian amber, wilted asphodel, myrrh, and smoke. ++ HISTORICAL ACCOUNTS, LANDMARKS, AND PERSONAGES 18 JUNE 1860 On this date, the first wet plate photograph of an eclipse was taken. Shimmering amber, collodion, silver nitrate accord, and white lavender. NOTHING IS UNEXPECTED, NOTHING IS FORESWORN Nothing is unexpected, nothing is foresworn and Nothing amazes now that father Zeus the Olympian veiled the light to make it night at midday even as sun was shining: so dread fear has overtaken men. From this time on everything that men believe will be doubted: may none of us who see this be surprised when we see forest beasts taking turns in the salted field with dolphins, when the echoing waves of the sea become Dearer to them than the sand, and the dolphins love the wooded glen - Archilochus Red amber and heady red wine, benzoin, ash, and bourbon vanilla. THE DRUNK ASTRONOMERS Credit for some of the first recorded accounts of eclipses are attributed to the legendary Drunk Astronomers, Ho and Hsi, circa 2137 BCE. Ho and Hsi were royal astronomers in the court of Chung K’ang. They were in charge of predicting the celestial dance – all movements of the Heavenly Bodies. They were also reprobates, and spent a fair amount of their time in debauch, drinking and carousing. In a drunken stupor – though they knew an eclipse was imminent – they failed to notify the emperor of the event, and they failed to perform the sacred rites that would prevent the celestial dragon from consuming the mighty sun. They were summarily decapitated for creating chaos and confusion in the celestial chain by leaving their duties unperformed. Here lie the bodies of Ho and Hsi, Whose fate, though sad, is risible; Being slain because they could not spy The eclipse which was invisible. Jasmine tea, blood musk, and pale yellow amber. IN HIDEOUS DARKNESS The elements manifested their sorrow at this great man's departure from England. For the Sun on that day at the 6th hour shrouded his glorious face, as the poets say, in hideous darkness, agitating the hearts of men by an eclipse; and on the 6th day of the week early in the morning there was so great an earthquake that the ground appeared absolutely to sink down; an horrid noise being first heard beneath the surface. - Historia Novella, William of Malmesbury on the death of Henry I Golden amber and ambergris, sage and white cedar, rockrose, bourbon tobacco, and vetiver. MABEL Mabel Loomis Todd is probably best known as the first editor of Emily Dickinson's poetry and editor of publications of Dickinson’s posthumous works. She was also a fearless and experienced adventuress, eclipse chaser and astronomer, and trekked over the globe locating unobscured sites to witness solar eclipses. She published Total Eclipses of the Sun in 1894, a list of past and future total solar eclipses, and recorded her experiences in her travels through painting and journals. Rose-tinted amber, golden chypre, ambergris, tobacco leaf, and clove. THE SUN IN ANGER SWORE And the moon in haste eclipsed her, and the Sun in anger swore He would curl his wick within him and give light to you no more. - Aristophanese, Chorus of Clouds A withdrawn, seething red amber spiked with dragon’s blood resin, black pepper, red musk, and red oudh. OIL AND PITCH It has been known since antiquity that looking directly at an eclipse can cause serious damage to the eyes. Islamic scholar, Al-Biruni, observed that you could minimize the damage by viewing an eclipse reflected in the surface of still water. In his Naturales Quaestiones, Seneca observed, "Whenever we want to watch an eclipse of the Sun we set out basins filled with oil or pitch, because the heavy liquid is not easily disturbed and so preserves the images it receives." Amber swirled in opoponax, black labdanum, and poplar tar. THE THALES ECLIPSE In the sixth year a battle took place in which it happened, when the fight had begun, that suddenly the day became night. And this change of the day Thales the Milesian had foretold to the Ionians laying down as a limit this very year in which the change took place. The Lydians however and the Medes, when they saw that it had become night instead of day, ceased from their fighting and were much more eager both of them that peace should be made between them. - Herodotus, on a prediction of by Thales of Miletus Red amber and leather, patchouli, champaca flower, frankincense, oudh, castoreum accord, and black musk. ++ BIBLICAL CATASTROPHES The Bible is filled with the eclipse’s ill-omens. Matthew, Mark, and Luke’s blood-red moons and midday darkness have indicated to Biblical historians that the date of the crucifixion was November 24th AD 29 (solar eclipse) or April 3rd AD 33 (partial lunar eclipse). THE CURTAIN OF THE TEMPLE WAS TORN IN TWO By now it was about midday and a darkness fell over the whole land, which lasted until three in the afternoon; the sun's light failed. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus gave a loud cry and said, 'Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit'; and with these words he died. Radiant golden amber suffused with holy incense smoke compounded from acacia, myrrh, cassia, balsam, frankincense, cinnamon, onycha accord, and galbanum. ++ 15 PAINTED CARDS FROM A VAMPIRE TAROT V. THE POPE This is my body, he said, two thousand years ago. This is my blood. It was the only religion that delivered exactly what it promised: life eternal, for its adherents. There are some of us alive today who remember him. And some of us claim that he was a messiah, and some think that he was just a man with very special powers. But that misses the point. Whatever he was, he changed the world. Life everlasting: clove-smoke, benzoin, rose maroc, Jerusalem cedar, cistus, and frankincense. VII. THE CHARIOT It was genetic engineering at its finest: they created a breed of human to sail the stars: they needed to be possessed of impossibly long life-spans, for the distances between the stars were vast; space was limited, and their food supplies needed to be compact; they needed to be able to process local sustenance, and to colonise the worlds they found with their own kind. The homeworld wished the colonists well, and sent them on their way. They removed all traces of their location from the ships’ computers first, however. To be on the safe side. The scent of white-hot metal and stardust, limned with glowing bergamot aldehyde. X. THE WHEEL OF FORTUNE What did you do with the doctor? she asked, and laughed. I thought the Doctor came in here ten minutes ago. I’m sorry, I said. I was hungry. And we both laughed. I’ll go find her for you, she said. I sat in the doctor’s office, picking my teeth. After a while the assistant came back. I’m sorry, she said. The doctor must have stepped out for a while. Can I make an appointment for you for next week? I shook my head. I’ll call, I said. But, for the first time that day, I was not telling the truth. An antiseptic white scent, splattered with blood. ++ BPAL 7 WORD STORY ENVY “Galatea wept as Pygmalion carved new statues.” -- Tyler Butler Marble-white sandalwood, vanilla blossom, and orris root veined with whorls of ambergris accord, rose-touched with life, slowly shattering tears of bitter carrot seed and cistus. ++ A LITTLE LUNACY HARVEST MOON 2017 Harvest Moon is celebrated in almost every culture, and the bounty of the season is marked in a myriad of ways. Harvest Moon touches the Equinox, the festival of Janus, the culmination of Homowo, the "crying of the neck" in Cornwall, and the Women's Festival of the Moon. This is a day that celebrates abundance and beauty, fertility and progress, and the light of this full moon blesses new undertakings and reunites lost loves. The Harvest Moon, by definition, is the Full Moon that falls closest to the Autumnal Equinox, and thus, it shares some of that Sabbat's characteristics. This Full Moon was thus named because it rises within half an hour of the sun's setting, in the Northern Hemisphere, and at this time farmers are able to work longer into the night by the light of this Moon. As the year draws to a close, the Full Moon rises an average of fifty minutes later each night, with the exception of a few nights surrounding the Harvest Moon, which only rises 10-30 minutes later. This moon is also, to the human eye, the fullest and largest of the year's Moons, hanging gloriously huge, yellow and low in the night sky, and many lunar illusions play tricks our eyes at this time. The Harvest ushers in many celebrations, including the Equinox and the Festival of Janus, God of Doors. Janus is the Roman Lord of Gateways, beginnings and endings, and transitions. Thus, the Harvest Moon is a time for blessing new ventures, the onset of new and progressive phases in one's life, and rites of passage into adulthood. This time of year also marks one of the Festivals of Dionysus, Lord of Ecstasy and the Vine. This Harvest lunacy combines the autumnal scents of dry leaves, mulling spices, balsam fir and spruce tips, cedar, juniper berry, clove, saffron, wild apple, sage, yarrow, and lily twined with Dionysus' sacred grapes and ivy, a bounty of blackberry and pumpkin, deep russet sunflowers, the amaranth and lingum aloes of Janus, all touched by a gentle breath of festival woodsmoke and sweet wine. ++ SINGLE NOTES WILD HONEYSUCKLE

People! Our weekly roundup of news so amazing it could be fake (but isn't) is now live! Read it and gawp. https://www.tumblr.com/blog/blackphoenixalchemylab

Hi friends! Here are this year's Midsummer Scream event exclusive scents, featuring spooktacular label artwork by Drew Rausch! We'll be selling the following all weekend from our booth at the Long Beach Convention Center: BLACKLIGHT-REACTIVE ZOMBIE HAND Electric eucalyptus with veins of green oud, black currant, ti leaf, and mate. BATTERY-OPERATED PROP CHAINSAW Vetiver and lubricant painted over distressed plastic. RESIN CAST MEAT SKULL Oozing with red currant jelly, spiked with crunchy lumps of meringue, and discharge from sweet cream cheese pustules. They go for $25 each. Smelling is believing! Dare you? Get your tickets at http://midsummerscream.org Now, please enjoy this video!

Hi everyone! The Black Phoenix Gazette, our weekly roundup of cherished news bits, is now live. This week we're looking at monsters, Munsters, medieval times, and more! http://blackphoenixalchemylab.tumblr.com/post/163256007388/welcome-to-our-weekly-roundup-of-cherished-news It's great weekend reading.

If you've been wondering exactly which of the 15 Painted Cards From A Vampire Tarot will be available at the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund welcome party at San Diego Comic Con, the wait is over! Here's the official list: The Pope The Chariot The Wheel of Fortune Justice Temperance The Devil The Tower The Star The Fool The Magician The Priestess The Lovers Your $30 purchase nets you a bottle of perfume plus a printed tarot card inspired by Neil Gaiman's writing and featuring an illustration by Madame Talbot. We hope to see you there! That's this Thursday night at 8 at the Westgate Hotel.

Hi everyone, We're proud to announce F#@K "A censored scent, reminiscent of sugar crust with a hint of cherry meringue." Created exclusively for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund's opening night gala at San Diego Comic Con this Thursday, F#@K will be available for $26. Many other BPAL limited-edition scents benefiting charities, as well as our Neil Gaiman/CBLDF collaborations, will also be on offer. We hope to see you there! *WHEN AND WHERE* 8 p.m. Thursday, July 20 Westgate Hotel 1055 Second Avenue Free for CBLDF members, $10 to $20 suggested donation for members.

Hi everyone, As we drill down to the story behind the story of Carnaval Diabolique, we're striking motherlodes of useful information, such as the origins of sideshow standard the human blockhead and (SPOILER ALERT! ) how the whole spike-up-the-nose trick works. This tumblr includes gory video! http://blackphoenixalchemylab.tumblr.com/post/162874957403/featured-carnaval-diabolique-scent-the-blockhead Or you may wish to let the mystery be and just take a whiff of The Interlude, Act IV of Carnaval Diabolique. https://blackphoenixalchemylab.com/shiny-new/

***AIRHORN NOISE*** Our fairy dragmothers The Nobodies are becoming viral video stars with their new series "Nobodies Watching Wrestling." Beginning July 13th, you'll be able to smell like two drag queens (and a DJ) snarking about pay-per-view pantylines, thanks to our bold new scent collaboration: NOBODIES WATCHING WRESTLING Black leather and strawberry lip gloss. The Nobodies will also have a limited quantity of NOBODIES HOSTING WRESTLING to sell at the premiere of their 2nd annual Mx. Nobody Pageant on July 13th -- the winner of their un-pageant will receive a $500 grand prize from BPAL, as well as gifts from Gothic Renaissance and others. In the meantime, you can gag on their video series here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsA4Pd816Rc And thanks to Galen Adair for an amazing perfume promo video: Watch it now!

Hello everyone, As summer steams on, and the land and the waters yield their plenty, so does our master perfumer, with two new Lunacy scents that'll waft you into August: STURGEON MOON and a MANGO Single Note. Now you know.

We're geeking out over here, delving into the the weird world that inspires Act IV of Carnaval Diabolique and surfacing facts (and a little fancy) for your entertainment and edification. We think you'll like the backstory on KNUCKLEBONES on our tumblr: http://blackphoenixalchemylab.tumblr.com/post/162712576888/featured-carnaval-diabolique-scent-knucklebones

Hey, seekers of knowledge! Check out our weekly news roundup on tumblr! https://www.tumblr.com/blog/blackphoenixalchemylab You'll be glad you did.

Hello Everyone! We are delighted to announce that the next act of Carnaval Diabolique, a collection of 36 perfume oil blends and 10 hair glosses, is now live! First enjoy this video preview: Then have a look at the collection! Perfumes: https://blackphoenixalchemylab.com/shiny-new/ Hair glosses: https://blackphoenixtradingpost.com/category/carnaval-diabolique/ Welcome to Carnaval Diabolique! ACT IV: THE INTERLUDE The flames leap from Priala's body, touching the dry canvas walls, setting the 13-in-1 aflame. Squinting your eyes against the blinding bursts of light and motion, you see a sign on the wall that reads "TO THE EGRESS". Staggering through the fire, you make your way out of the tent and back onto the rain-slick Midway. STORMCLOUDS OVER THE MIDWAY In your smoke-addled confusion, the Midway seems strangely empty and devoid of life. The tents that line the path appear distorted, out of proportion, and cartoonish, their angles arching menacingly. For a moment, the only sound you hear is the soft squelch of your boots on the damp ground. As your eyes adjust, the tents right themselves, the sounds of the Midway swirl around you, and you feel the press of the crowd against your body. The Calliope's eerie drone lilts above the swelling chatter. Wine-colored storm clouds are gathering, and the scent of incense and ozone is thick in the wet air. Thunder-charged ozone, plum-colored incense smoke, opium tar, and wormwood. THE URCHINS You hear a tittering of laughter: high-pitched and discordant, like bent, cracked silver bells clattering onto sheets of rusted metal. In the gloom of a dilapidated tent, the glow of small red eyes reflects on shining steel blades. Dust and dead, dry flowers, ice-cold skin, the swish of a metal blade, and a memory of honey. NIBBLE NIBBLE GNAW Looking down, you see a scattering of breadcrumbs strewn on the packed soil and straw at your feet. A waft of candied apple and pancakes embraces you, as you follow the crumbs on the path. The scent intensifies: sugared nuts, crushed candies, hot gusts of chocolate, and you find yourself standing before a small booth constructed of cakes, pastries, sweet breads, and a cascade of candy tiles. Shards of clear sugar glint in the ambient firelight of the Midway, and an old woman emerges from the shadows within. She extends a gnarled hand to you and rasps, “Oh, you dear, what has brought you here? You look like skin and bones; a strong gust of wind would spirit you into the air. Do come in, and visit with me. No harm shall happen to you.” KNUCKLEBONES You hear a clatter on the ground behind you, and a small bleached bone smacks against your foot. Cloaked in shadows between the tents, three men crouch playing knucklebones. Distress clouds the face of one of the men, while another bursts into a wicked smile and the last one sighs in relief. Scooping up his winnings and shaking his head, the victor makes a soft 'tsk' noise as he reaches towards the loser's chest, positioning his hand over the man's heart. Pressing forward, his hand moves through cloth, flesh, muscle, and bone to extract the beating organ. Tossing the heart onto the ground, he says to you, "Mind handing me those bones, buddy? I've got a game to run here." Black musk, bay rum, lime fougere, orange blossom water, gin, and tobacco. L'HEURE VERTE Recoiling, you back away from the dicing. A large tent striped in many shades of green grabs your attention, and you walk towards it. You peer inside the open tent flap and see a room crowded with people in various stages of profound intoxication. Tables are littered with glasses filled with thick, cloudy emerald liquid, and candlelight glints on discarded silver spoons. The scent of spilled absinthe, opium smoke, lilac blossoms, and rose water permeates the stifling air of the tent. As you close the tent flap and turn to leave, you see a scantily clad server bend close to a rugged laborer that is sitting slumped in a sagging chair. A low velvety voice voice asks, "Another drink for you, Monsieur Lanfray?" Spilled absinthe, scorched sugar cubes, opium smoke, lilac blossoms, and rose water. THE BLOCKHEAD Back out on the Midway, a huge, leather-clad man leans against a post. He smiles at you, guilelessly, baring a mouthful of sharpened teeth as he hammers huge rusted nails into his skull. Rusted metal, leather, and a pop of pink bubblegum. SOLANINE, THE FLOWER GIRL In the distance, you hear the discordant tolling of churchbells, uneven and strangely triumphant. As you turn towards the beckoning clang, you feel something brush across your neck: a gentle caress before a hundred pricking trichomes tear at your skin. There is a sudden whipping sensation and a clench of movement, and your throat is clamped in a rigid green noose. A raspy voice whispers, “Pardon,” and the grip on you loosens. A woman stands behind you. She holds a basket overflowing with creeping vines and flowers: razor-thorned roses, vibrant bursts of oleander, drooping cascades of wisteria, sprays of white hemlock and lily of the valley, bruise-blue pillows of aconite, purple-veined henbane, and the snapping jaws of monstrously large flytraps, glistening wet with mucilage. Her clothes smell faintly of manchineel smoke, and her fingertips are stained green. She smiles and shudders as the green tendrils that surround her writhe and contract. She plucks a red-spotted mushroom from her basket and places it gently in your palm before turning away. THE CHAPEL You come to a building that seems to have been hastily erected from splintered wood, stone, and plaster. Flickering light from within sparkles out through blood-tinged chunks of glass that have been wedged into the arch entrance. You push open the thick velvet curtain that covers the mouth of the building and look inside. The chapel is small and cramped, and the air is thick with heavy incense, bitter wine, sulphur, and the coppery scent of blood. A massive stained glass window is set against the back wall, glowing brightly. In the center of the room, a groveling figure is crouched before a woman draped in purple-black clerical robes. The woman's eyes are filled with righteous hellfire, and she extends a hand in benediction to the man who has fallen prostrate at her feet. He murmurs, "Libera Te Ex Caelum", and she gestures for him to rise. As he gets to his knees he winces in pain and moans in a strange expression of ecstasy, and you see small horns growing from his skull. Black incense, bitter wine, brimstone, bile, and blood. THE GRINDHOUSE Throaty laughter captures your attention. Across the lane you see a buxom Venetian woman standing before a huge black and red striped tent. Her head is inclined towards a dapper, leering man, and they appear to be sharing a private joke. He reaches into his waistcoat and produces a gold coin. The woman plucks it from his fingers. He bows, and walks into the tent with a swagger. A sign flashes above the tent flap in letters that seem to be aflame: The Grindhouse, Dead or Live Girls. The Madam turns towards you and smiles. As she approaches, someone within the tent strikes a few keys on a tuneless piano, and begins to play Jelly Roll Morton's 'the Crave'. The light within the tent illuminates the interior, shining behind the silhouettes of naked women gyrating lewdly upon raised stages, writhing in time with the music. In the distance, behind the tent, you hear a whip crack, and a man's scream. Tittering laughter follows, and the screams continue. "Voulez-vous un morceau de la boîte de bonbon?" she asks, gesturing gracefully towards the tent. The Madam's perfume envelops you. Florentine iris, red musk, mimosa, magnolia, Damascus rose, clove, and vanilla bean. BEHIND THE VEILS Blood-red light cascades through languorous folds of sheer cloth. Hell-bright embers breathe into the gloom as billowing ribbons of thick, dark incense wrap their tendrils of smoke around your body like the curious hands of a lover. Heady red musk, myrrh and honey, drops of cinnamon and crushed cardamom pod, the taste of opium-laced black wine, sweet oudh, and threads of saffron. ++ THE GRINDHOUSE AERONWEN Fig, dark myrrh, amber, redwood, nutmeg, tarragon, black musk, and sweet orange. AGRAT-BAT-MAHLAHT Amber, cream accord, white honey, apple blossom, skin musk, caramel, and teak. ALISZ Spun sugar, frankincense, white rose, mallow root, red currant, and vanilla mint. ASHLULTUM Babylonian musk, vanilla tea, tonka, tobacco, coconut, hyssop, and lilac. BRANGWY Blackcurrant and cardamom with peru balsam, patchouli, leather, and oudh. Blóðughadda Crushed Baltic amber, golden fig, oud wood, red patchouli, white clove, and saffron. CLÉMENCE Patchouli, Kashmiri tea, cardamom, black pepper, carnation, and clove. CYTHEREA White sandalwood, patchouli, white amber, orris, bourbon vanilla, champaca flower, and kush. DIONYSIA Wild plum, pomegranate, raspberry, Siamese benzoin, plum blossom, patchouli, frankincense, and mahogany. DAIYU Moroccan jasmine, chrysanthemum, tea leaf, white musk, and acai berry. EISHETH ZENUNIM Honey, ambergris, neroli, white peach, patchouli, and cocoa absolute. GWYNETH Rose otto, tonka, orchid, Calla lily, skin musk, coconut, and Spanish sage. HARPER Pale bergamot, labdanum, white incense, vanilla-tinged musk, Burmese oudh and tea rose. INEZ Golden amber, vanilla musk, myrrh, cedar, carnation, and red sandalwood. JAALI Sweet Indonesian patchouli, red benzoin, champaca attar, French lavender, coconut husk, bay leaf, tobacco absolute, lime, and honey. JIAOLONG Sugared coffee bean, black musk, and sugar cane. MARCILLA Blue lilac, lily of the valley, golden musk, beeswax, white ginger, bergamot, green tea, and nectarine. MARGUERITE Rose, rose geranium, myrrh, ylang ylang, French gardenia, tuberose, red sandalwood, and palmarosa. MARIANNE Red musk, bergamot, black currant, mimosa, orchid, patchouli, and lotus root. MORANA Snow drifting on black pine, blood red apple, rosewood, osmanthus, and lemon peel. PARTHENOPE Honeysuckle, orris, moss, musk, benzoin, oakmoss, and star jasmine. SETH Sudanese myrrh, papyrus, champaca flower, black lotus, amber, and honeyed leather. SHAKARRI White pear and absinthe, sea moss and patchouli, labdanum and crushed coral. A cluster of wooden wagons stands off to the side of the Midway, removed from the bustle of the dirt-caked makeshift street. A bonfire burns in the center of the lot, shining its light on a tattoo-covered woman. The images embedded in her skin writhe like living things, and the sigils that mark her glow faintly. She is filing her nails and smoking a cheroot while chatting idly with an impassive naked blonde who has been hoisted into the air by thick, gleaming meathooks. The blonde is pinioned; the blackened metal cables that bind her hang tightly from the branches of a massive grey oak. Her skin seems strangely translucent, and her veins and arteries are boldly visible. Two painted signs are propped, sideways, against the side of the tree: THE ILLUSTRATED WOMAN THE TORTURE QUEEN The tattoo'd woman winks at you as you pass by. "Break time, honey," she growls, as she blows a smoke ring in your direction. THE ILLUSTRATED WOMAN Skin musk, smoky vanilla, pine pitch, patchouli, Indian resins, golden honey, and tobacco. THE TORTURE QUEEN White amber, vanilla musk, white tea, ambergris, gardenia, and chrome. THE BLOOD GARDEN Vast open tents have been erected further down the lane. Ornately carved wooden poles support swaths of drooping black lace and blood-crusted burgundy velvet. Grapevines and ivy creep over the beams in the tent and curl like cocoons around bodies that hang upside-down in the caliginous gloom of the tents. Within the shadows, pale figures recline on divans covered in moldering, frayed fabric. As you pass, a feral, white-haired man hoists a tall-stemmed crystal glass of deep red liquid in a toast to you. Blood accord, bitter clove, English ivy, Tempranillo grape, red currant, oak, leather, blackberry leaf, and ginger lily. ++ BPTP HAIR GLOSSES Bedeck your locks (or snakes or horns or whatever you’re sporting up top) with scents gleaned from the Midway! Smell like you’ve stepped right off the platform of Carnaval Diabolique’s 13-in-One! AMBER AND STEEL HOOKS With a touch of oak bark and bourbon vanilla. BOURBON & BONE Clacking white sandalwood drenched in whiskey and a puff of cigar smoke. CRACK OF THUNDER Streaks of blue-white lightning slashing through a plum wine sky. LA ROUE de MALHEUR Red musk, blackened patchouli, opium tar, inky oudh, champaca flower, pomegranate pulp, frankincense, and tobacco. MISCHIEF Blood-spattered cotton candy. NERVES AND SINEW, WOOD AND CLAY Taut red strings of daemonorops draco and licorice root tugging on carved oak streaked with vetiver and clove with bright nerve-sparks of frankincense and elemi. RAZORS IN A DOLL’S HOUSE Rose water, cognac, and lace slashed with gleaming silver. RED INCENSE Red sandalwood, myrrh, cinnamon husk, and copal bound with blood, currants, and red wine. SCREECHING REVENANT Icy blue musk, eucalyptus, white pine, and opoponax. WHO IS NIBBLING AT MY HOUSE? "Save your slobbering," said the old woman. "It doesn't help you at all." Caramel apples, cardamom cakes, hazelnut cream, and butterscotch. Tom • 56 mins