JAPANESE DRAG QUEENS, FETISH WRESTLING, MASKS, CUSTOM VAMPIRE FANGS: INSIDE DEPARTMENT H TOKYO ALTERNATIVE PARTY.
My first NYC signing for Cute Yummy Time went so well that the store invited me back! I hope you can come say hi and sample delicious kawaii treats on HALLOWEEN.
La Carmina: Cute Yummy Time book signing and demo
October 31, 2-4pm, Broadway Panhandler, 65 E 8th St, NYC
http://www.broadwaypanhandler.com/
Now let’s go inside the Department H party with my friends and the Bizarre World cameraman. The party welcomes nudity, fetishes and alternative sexuality — but I think creative, personal expression is the best term to describe the scene.
The two-floor Kinema Club had stations where you could sign up for hook suspension, or extreme piercings, or get custom-fit vampire fangs… After a happy parade of Japanese drag queens, there was a succession performances that were the definition of random. As in a bandaged-faced vocalist swinging around a fake wrecking ball while three people dressed as prisoners danced out-of-sync and sang off-key…
Half-naked wrestling with rules that made no sense…
S&M suspension show involving an alien… (more on this tomorrow!)
The man on the right intrigued us. Why the bandage on the lower back? Why the purposefully lopsided undies?
I attend fetish/alt events and never hide the fact that I take part in this subculture… and I try to present it in a fair and open light. Parties such as Department H are safe, non-judgmental spaces. We had a fantastic time that night, and I highly recommend the experience to Tokyo visitors. If you ever have any questions, feel free to ask me. :)
Song of the Day #221: Amanda Palmer – Leeds United (Love her voice, her style, her rants on her blog and Twitter.)
This entry was posted on Monday, October 19th, 2009 at 23:01 and is filed under Fashion, Nightcrawling. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
October 20th, 2009 at 01:54
kai says:poking for a bit~ thxs for the heads up. i always wanted to go to a fetish party someday. seems real interesting. fill in for us more!
cheers~
October 20th, 2009 at 02:37
Emma says:What happens in Tokyo over Christmas and New Year's? I'm going back. I had to!!! Any good suggestions for celebrating the two holidays in Tokyooo? ^_^
- So people walk around naked in that club, or…?
October 20th, 2009 at 02:43
blovetbeauty says:my gawd. the drag queen pics were very entertaining!
October 20th, 2009 at 06:52
Fluffy Conti says:lol, purposely lopsided undies!
October 20th, 2009 at 09:49
stillprince says:O0o0h!! I wanna go here!! I think I would enjoy places like this (I love S&M as well… the wrestling part made me laugh though lol)! Seriously, those people look like they fucking rock haha
The guy with his arsecheek hanging out made me lol hard. It just looks so funny to wear your underwear like that xD I bet he did it for teh lulz
October 20th, 2009 at 09:54
lacarmina says:I'll have even more exciting photos up tomorrow! My friends and I were SO excited to be at this party — it was a visual feast and we couldn't stop smiling.
October 20th, 2009 at 09:55
lacarmina says:Yeah it was so much fun! I love the sense of humor and creativity found at this party.
October 20th, 2009 at 09:56
lacarmina says:AUGH I'm in Tokyo just before New Years! Email me — we can meet up.
There is a Midnight Mess on Dec 26 (you MUST go), a Tokyo Decadance new years party I believe, and a Dix Inferno concert on Dec 30.
October 20th, 2009 at 09:56
lacarmina says:And yeah, people walk around naked… mostly men with masks and parts hanging out…. but they don't bother other people and everyone is chill with it!
October 20th, 2009 at 09:57
lacarmina says:Yeah! I am so intrigued… why, how??
October 20th, 2009 at 10:21
stillprince says:Yeah haha and btw, naked wrestling matches ftw
October 20th, 2009 at 10:22
Ana says:oh wow lol very interesting haha i want to go to that wrestling match lol to watch only not to fight
October 20th, 2009 at 10:49
lacarmina says:Hahah yeah it was fun to watch, but I agree — I wouldn't want to participate.
October 20th, 2009 at 10:54
Liz O. says:A few months ago, we did a story on a fetish event in LA and I actually thought the crowd was more polite than what you would find at a mainstream event. There are a lot of misconceptions about the scene, so I appreciate your posting about it.
October 20th, 2009 at 10:58
Ayame says:Well if the bandage and the lopsided undies aren't weird enough…. why blue? xD
October 20th, 2009 at 11:02
lacarmina says:Definitely. I've always had positive, welcoming experiences at fetish events in the west and Japan. Not all of the activities are for me, but I appreciate that there's a space for open expression.
October 20th, 2009 at 11:02
lacarmina says:Haha, I wonder! It's a cheerful color, for sure.
October 20th, 2009 at 14:06
Elizabeth says:The draq queen in the S&M suspension picture looks familiar!
October 20th, 2009 at 15:57
inside out banana says:thats ah-mah-zing i soo wanna go
kinda jealous rite now, cause mii firend iz goin ta Japan, n im gonna murder him n his sleep n take his ticket Mwahahaha…wait did i say dat out loud?…oops teehee lolz
of course i hav ppl dat wuld frown upon dis activity, but who's gotta no? lolz
n im proud of mii “interest” who says i gotta hide em eh?
October 20th, 2009 at 16:12
lacarmina says:Hahah! This made me LOL…
October 20th, 2009 at 16:13
lacarmina says:The one doing the flogging? It's actually a woman, hahaha! She's a Japanese mistress (I don't know her personally).
October 20th, 2009 at 19:54
Moon Maiden 90 says:haha that would be so fun, but no actual participation from me though! lol
October 20th, 2009 at 22:03
melissarundle says:The costume with the plastic baby heads is insane
October 21st, 2009 at 03:19
gilimalili says:This looks like crazy fun :)
October 21st, 2009 at 08:25
Black Bitten Nibblets says:awww I love these sorts of scenes :)
October 21st, 2009 at 09:03
lacarmina says:Yeah!! It might inspire one of my many costumes this year..
October 21st, 2009 at 09:04
lacarmina says:We were smiling the entire time!
October 21st, 2009 at 19:27
Dolly Ramone says:This is so great, haha. That bandage looks more like a cooling pad; I don't know if you actually liv in Japan or not, but people wear those all the time when they have pain (lower back, arms, wherever really…). Maybe you already know that and are just making jokes – who knows? Interesting blog for sure.
October 22nd, 2009 at 13:24
lacarmina says:Hahah I remember some ridiculous stick-on cooling pads… so funny!
October 24th, 2009 at 14:37
Louise says:where can i find dates and map??
October 24th, 2009 at 15:07
lacarmina says:There is a Department H website! http://www.dept-h.com/
October 24th, 2009 at 21:37
Louise says:where can i find dates and map??
October 24th, 2009 at 22:07
lacarmina says:There is a Department H website! http://www.dept-h.com/