Parceling out one’s time for projects can always be an issue, especially during the summer months, when visitors tend to visit warmer climes. Im not immune to this dilemma, as I’ve been working behind the scenes on something different – longitudelly similar to Steampunk in many ways, but different Dieselpunk.
Miss Carver in the foyer of one of Seraph City’s Art Deco Buildings,The Carrington Department StoreDieselpunk, for those who may not be familiar with it, is loosely timed between World War 1 to just after World War 2, with heavy influences from the classic American Pulp novels, the Art Deco movement, Film Noir, Jazz and Swing musical genres reaching a new audience via radio, Movie serials from the era, and of course, the burgeoning Movie industry itself.
The Java Jive Club, in Searph CityThe similarities to Steampunk do exist, especially in Second Life, but Dieselpunk has one distinct difference, be it for better or worse, which is the popularization of entertainment in the main stream media. With Hollywood productions reaching a larger population through distribution networks and “new fangled” radio reaching a national audience on a regular basis, a basis for the Dieselpunk genre already exists. This is in contrast to Steampunk, where a substantial portion of the genre either was solely based on literature (at least until the advent of some early Steampunk movies in the mid-century), and the development of a growing body of literature coupled with new technological developments (e.g. video, the infusion of modern instruments in the nominal Steampunk musical genre, and virtual communities).
The Empire Jazz Club entrance, on the corner of town
My own time has been focused on virtual communities, specifically Second Life, where I’ve joined a new Dieselpunk sim named Seraph City. With a cacophony of architecture (from Art Nouveau to Art Deco), entertainment (Jazz and Burlesque clubs), the sim is quickly establishing itself as a highlight in the Dieselpunk sims.
If you happen to be in Second Life, and wish to visit, follow this Slurl to : http://slurl.com/secondlife/searph%20city/194/123/128/
Additionally, with the unfortunate shuttering of the USO Club, the Carrington in Searph City, will take up the baton and hold the Fourth of July USO Dance this Saturday (July 3rd), from 7pm to 10pm, SLT. (The event was moved to allow for RL events on the fourth itself). For more information on SL Dieselpunk and Searph City, please visit the Seraph City website, at: http://www.seraphcity.com/index.php/home , or… my own renovated site, Second Life Jazz After midnight, at: http://sljazzaftermidnight.blogspot.com/
“At Your Usual Dealer”, by Mr. Stephan Paris
If Second Life isn’t your “cup of joe”, but you are a bit piqued by Dieselpunk, please consider visiting the following locales
Dieselpunks.org – One of the most authoritative site on the topic of Dieselpunk on the web
The Gatehouse Gazette has an extensive section on Dieselpunk, including excellent reading on the topic in the monthly Gazette
http://dieselpunk44.blogspot.com/
http://dieselpunk.net/ (Dieselpunk Fashion)
http://www.thefedoralounge.com/index.php
http://www.tcm.com/index.jsp
Air Travel, by Mr. Stephan Paris
(Ed. Note – I’ll be adding a Dieselpunk section to the Steampunk links soon, so if interested, do keep an eye on the sidebars!)
