Ink & Dagger screening of The Order

PhilaMOCA is hosting the Philadelphia premiere of The Order on Tuesday, October 27, a short film by Nathaniel Shannon. It's more than just a screening, though. After the film, Keith Montgomery of The New Scene Podcast leads a conversation with Shannon, Don Devore, and Robby Redcheeks, and Don Devore follows that with a live musical performance. Erik Bader also reads from The Philadelphia Society of Future Vampires.

To understand why this particular film carries so much weight, you have to know about Ink & Dagger. They were a Philadelphia punk, hardcore, and psychedelic band that burned from 1996 to 1999, blending those sounds with occult mystique, vampire lore, and blood-spattered theatrics. Their lineup shifted throughout those years, pulling in members of Guilt, Prema, and Frail, along with Dave Wagenschutz, Gregg Foreman, Eric Wareheim, Josh Brown, and Jennifer Layne Park. Frontman Sean McCabe died in 2000 at 27. They've remained a band's band ever since: American Nightmare, Thursday, The Murder City Devils, Botch, AFI, and My Chemical Romance have all cited them as a core influence. Trust Records has reissued their entire discography, remastered by David Cooley, who's worked with M83, Tame Impala, and Jimmy Eat World.

The Order is Shannon's short film about the band, and its score and sound design come from founding member Don Devore. Shannon's work has been shown at the New Museum, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, and The New York Times named it one of the best of 2015. He describes the film as a phantasmagorical audio-visual overload of vampiric 'Philaspychogeography' and pure psychic energy.

The screening is at PhilaMOCA, 531 N 12th St, on Tuesday, October 27. Doors open at 7 PM and the show starts at 7:30 PM. Tickets are $18.15.