#146 - Mitch Horowitz, Occult Historian and Practical Magic(k)ian

Mitch Horowitz is one of today’s most literate voices of occultism, mysticism, and the unexplained. He has bylines in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Politico, Time, and The Wall Street Journal, and appearances in Sundance-premiering movies, popular TV docuseries, and award-winning documentaries, as well as on CBS Sunday Morning, Dateline NBC, NPR’s All Things Considered, and other major media. Mitch also worked for many years in publishing, including as a vice president at Penguin Random House where he was editor-in-chief of Tarcher/Penguin, an imprint dedicated to metaphysics.

He now hosts the Discovery/HBO Max TV series, Alien Encounters: Fact or Fiction, and he appears regularly on seasons one and two of History’s The UnBelievable with Dan Ackroyd and in numerous docuseries including MGM+’s BEYOND: UFOs and the Unknown. He is also the host of the podcast series Extraordinary Evidence: ESP Is Real out from SpectreVision. Mitch also hosted, cowrote, and produced a feature documentary about the occult classic The Kybalion directed by Emmy-nominee Ronni Thomas and shot on location in Egypt.

Mitch is a former writer-in-residence at the New York Public Library and the PEN Award-winning and wildly prolific author of many books including Occult America, One Simple Idea, The Miracle Club, Modern Occultism, and his newest offering, Practical Magick: Ancient Tradition and Modern Practice which is out on March 25th and available for preorder now.

On this episode, Mitch discusses his dual roles as an occult historian and practitioner, why self-expression and true desire are the keys to effective spellcasting, and how his belief in “anarchic magick” has led him to a happier and more fulfilling life.

Pam also talks about the magic of wishes, and answers a listener question about staying protected as a public witch.

Check out the video of this episode over on YouTube (and please like and subscribe to the channel while you’re at it!)

Donate to Pam’s fundraiser for The ACLU here

Get 20% off DeleteMe here (not an official sponsor, just a personal recommendation from Pam. Disclosure: Pam does get a small referral fee for each registration.)

Our sponsors for this episode are The Witch Summit, Ritual + Shelter, Mithras Candle, BetterHelp, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, and The Alchemist and the Academic podcast

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here, and all sorts of other bewitching goodies available in the Witch Wave shop.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#145 - Vera Sola AKA Danielle Aykroyd, Spirited Songstress

Danielle Aykroyd is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who performs under the name Vera Sola. Sometimes called the "lost love child of Leonard Cohen and Nancy Sinatra," Vera Sola’s smoky vocalization and searing, soaring songs have a cinematic aspect to them, and would feel equally at home in a David Lynch film or a prairie full of phantoms. A trained poet, her lyrics are twisting and imagistic, marked alternatively by restrained mystery and a resplendent, wild-eyed rage.

Her 2018 debut LP, Shades, which she plays every instrument on, is a study in shadowy Americana and mesmeric incantation. Her sophomore album of 2024, Peacemaker, is a more expansive extravaganza with lush orchestration, dark dreamscapes, and tales of vengeance, heartache, and haunting. Vera Sola’s new EP, Ghostmaker is a pared-down resurrection of Peacemaker tracks, and features a brand new song, “The Ghostmaster’s Daughter.”

On this episode, Danielle discusses how spirits guide her music, her relationship to ghosts, and the liberating power of finding her voice.

Pam also talks about the feminist history of Spiritualism, and answers a listener question about a precarious prediction.

 Vera Sola’s songs featured in the audio version of this podcast episode are as follows:

“Circles” from Shades

“Bad Idea” from Peacemaker

“The Ghostmaster’s Daughter” from Ghostmaker

“Blood Bond” from Peacemaker

“Instrument of War” from Peacemaker

Check out the video of this episode over on YouTube (and please like and subscribe to the channel while you’re at it!)

Our sponsors for this episode are Mithras Candle, BetterHelp, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, and Dear Antigone.

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here, and all sorts of other bewitching goodies available in the Witch Wave shop.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#144 - Matt Marble of the American Museum of Paramusicology

Matt Marble is an artist, author, audio producer and director of the American Museum of Paramusicology ("brilliant and humbling," The Paris Review). Both creatively and through historical research, his work explores the inspired intersections of art and metaphysics and the intuitive disciplines they mutually employ. Matt is the author of Buddhist Bubblegum: Esotericism in the Creative Process of Arthur Russell ("groundbreaking work," New York Times), and the producer/host of Secret Sound, a podcast exploring the metaphysical biopics of American musicians, and The Hidden Present, an audio interview series exploring intuitive discipline and spiritual imagination. Additional works have been featured by the California Festival, Warp Records, and the Philosophical Research Society. His writing, research, media production, and personal archive constitute the American Museum of Paramusicology (AMP), through which he also publishes the monthly AMP Journal. 

Matt's visual art and music are often rooted in his own dreamwork divination practice--the Astramira or "Wondering Stars." This work has been featured as a solo art exhibition at Greensboro Project Space, as well as through releases of instrumental guitar music and dream songs. His album of solo acoustic guitar music, The Living Mirror, was released by UK label The Crystal Cabinet in 2021. Matt holds a BA in speech & hearing science from Portland State University, a PhD in music composition from Princeton University, and a black rattlesnake from his dreams. 

On this episode, Matt discusses the relationship between music and mysticism, favorite musician-magicians, and how dreams influence his own sonic and visual art.

Pam also talks about casting her love spell at Jinkx Monsoon’s Carnegie Hall show, and answers a listener question about witchcraft and entrepreneurship.

Check out the video of this episode over on YouTube (and please like and subscribe to the channel while you’re at it!)

Our sponsors for this episode are The Witch Summit, The Crystal Ballers podcast, BetterHelp, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, and The Alchemist and the Academic podcast.

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here, and all sorts of other bewitching goodies available in the Witch Wave shop.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#143 - Leila Taylor Returns! Author of "Sick Houses: Haunted Homes and the Architecture of Dread"

Leila Taylor is a Brooklyn-based writer, speaker, and designer whose work focuses on the intersection of history and horror and the gothic in contemporary culture. She’s the author of Sick Houses: Haunted Homes and the Architecture of Dread (out Feb 11, 2025) and Darkly: Black History and America’s Gothic Soul, her essays have appeared in Us: The Complete Annotated Screenplay, The Repeater Book of the Occult, The New Urban Gothic: Global Gothic in the Age of the Anthropocene, and the graphic novel Bitter Root. 

On this episode, Leila discusses the captivating power of haunted houses, the aptly named Brutalist architecture movement, and the irresistible appeal of the “witch house.”

Pam also talks about apotropaic house magic, and answers a listener question about amulets and talismanic jewelry.

Check out the video of this episode over on YouTube (and please like and subscribe to the channel while you’re at it!)

Our sponsors for this episode are Ritual + Shelter, Dear Antigone, BetterHelp, Mithras Candle, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, and ZOUZ Incense

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here, and all sorts of other bewitching goodies available in the Witch Wave shop.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#142 - HausWitch's Erica Feldmann Returns!

Erica Feldmann is the owner and founder of HausWitch, a company devoted to helping people heal their spaces and love their homes. She holds a Master's degree in Gender and Cultural Studies, with a research concentration in Witches. Her innate interest in the connection between home spaces and wellness led to the creation of HausWitch in 2012, and what started as a “micro budget + magick = makeover” interiors blog would eventually become a thriving brick and mortar shop and online community based in downtown Salem, MA. In 2019, Harper Collins published her first book HausMagick: Transform Your Home with Witchcraft, and her new book, Intention Obsession: Rituals and Witchcraft for Every Season is out now. She has also been featured in such places as Nylon, Vogue, Teen Vogue, Refinery 29, Apartment Therapy.

On this episode, Erica discusses the how to cultivate an accessible practice of “low-lift magic for burnt-out witches,” ways to work with Aquarian energies, and why the witch is the perfect figure to meet this tumultuous historical moment.

Pam also talks about Martin Luther King Jr. and David Lynch’s teachings on banishing darkness, and responds to a listener’s question about meeting one’s matron goddess.

Please consider donating to the GoFundMe Wildfire Relief Fund and/or to those on the GoFundMe LA Displaced Black Families Directory

Register for Pam’s Artemis, Arise! Ritual Workshop on Jan 27th (recording available for up to 30 days after)

Our sponsors for this episode are Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, BetterHelp, TU·ET·AL, and Snowy Owl Tea

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here, and all sorts of other bewitching goodies available in the Witch Wave shop.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#141 - Astraleyes, Publisher of Bibliomancers and Artistic Abracadabbler

Astraleyes is a Los Angeles-based occult collage artist, archivist, and curator. He is also the publisher of Bibliomancers, an independent press dedicated to exploring vintage print design and its ties to cultural movements, with a special focus on the esoteric. Through Bibliomancers, Astraleyes seeks to uncover the connections between historical design, mysticism, and the hidden stories within visual culture. The Bibliomancers series has 5 books and counting, from SPELL BOUND, which is a book of images of vintage witchcraft paperback covers, to OCCULT EYE which focuses on imagery and ephemera from the new religious movement. Each tome is a celebration of pop occulture and an archive of the ways in which occult iconography has shapeshifted over time.

Astraleyes also has a massive following on Instagram under his @astraleyez handle where he posts his favorite vintage occult imagery, and you can follow his Bibliomancers series via his @bibliomancers handle.

On this episode, Astraleyes discusses his evolution as a psychedelic icon maker, his obsession with vintage occult paperback design, and the power of magical community-building.

Pam also talks about new year intentions and synchronicities, and responds to a listener’s comment about integrating witchcraft and mental health.

Our sponsors for this episode are Wheel of Fate, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, BetterHelp, TU·ET·AL, and ZOUZ Incense.

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here, and all sorts of other bewitching goodies available in the Witch Wave shop.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#140 - Lykanthea A.K.A. Lakshmi Ramgopal

Lakshmi Ramgopal is a musician and dancer who performs under the name Lykanthea. Her electro-mythic debut EP, Migration, received much-deserved praise from such outlets as The Chicago Tribune, Noisey, and Public Radio International’s The World, (and listeners will recognize its track “Hand and Eye” as The Witch Wave theme song). She’s collaborated with Savage Sister on their sundrowned EP, and she’s been creating and performing music via sound installations and performances for spaces such as The Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art and Chicago’s Lincoln Park Conservatory. Her new project, Some Viscera, marks a shift in instrumentation, drawing more heavily on her training in South Indian classical (or Carnatic) music, as well as organic sounds from analog instruments, bird song, and lullabies. It touches on atavistic questions of motherhood and personal legacy. When performed live it is an evening-length work of sound and movement that explores childhood, nostalgia, and kinship in the Indian-American diaspora in the wake of India’s independence, while questioning the boundaries of classical forms. Embracing the warmth of the sruti box, unprocessed vocals, and strings, Ramgopal’s ensemble draws on a wide range of influences to create a work that is as expansive as it is intimate. Some Viscera premiered at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago on September 26-27, 2024, and the music of Some Viscera is now available in a standalone album.

In addition to that, performing both solo and with her ensemble, Lakshmi has done site-specific, immersive shows in spaces like Chicago’s Edgar Miller’s Glasner Studio and Garfield Park Conservatory, and in the middle of a freshwater stream. In 2018 she showed A Half-Light Chorus, which a sound installation commissioned by Experimental Sound Studio, and In 2020 she and visual artist Nancy Davidson showed a site-specific sculpture and sound installation, at Krannert Art Museum. The museum acquired it in 2023.

Lakshmi received her PhD in Classics from the University of Chicago, and she is currently Assistant Professor of History at Columbia University, with a focus on the Roman Empire. 

On this episode, Lakshmi discusses her sonic shift from electronic to analog, music as ancestral offering, and the reincarnating power of love.

Pam also talks about the secret magic of lullabies, and responds to a listener’s comment about reconciling witchcraft with one’s religious upbringing.

Songs featured in the episode are all from Lykanthea’s new album, Some Viscera:

“Bird Song”

“Garuda”

“The Nightingale”

“Cremation”

Our sponsors for this episode are Ritual + Shelter, TU·ET·AL, UBU Skills, BetterHelp, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, Grimsby Hollow Meadery, and Open Sea Design Co.

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here, and all sorts of other bewitching goodies available in the Witch Wave shop.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#139 - Laura Tempest Zakroff, Sigil Witch

Laura Tempest Zakroff (she/they) is a professional artist, author, performer, and Modern Traditional Witch based in New England. She holds a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design, and her artwork has received awards and honors worldwide. Her work embodies myth and the esoteric through her drawings and paintings, jewelry, talismans, and other designs. Laura is the author of several bestselling Llewellyn books including Weave the Liminal, Sigil Witchery, Visual Alchemy, and Anatomy of a Witch, as well as the artist and author of the Sigil Witchery Oracle, Anatomy of a Witch Oracle, and The Liminal Spirits Oracle. 

She is also devoted to magical activism through her sigil offerings and other work. To that end, Laura edited The New Aradia: A Witch’s Handbook to Magical Resistance, The Gorgon's Guide to Magical Resistance, and Serpents of Circe: A Manual to Magical Resilience from Revelore Press. Laura is the creative force behind several community events and teaches workshops online and worldwide. Her site WeAreAradia.org is a hub for magic and activism, and lauratempestzakroff.com is where you can learn more about all her other art witch offerings.

On this episode, Laura discusses the importance of magical resistance in tumultuous times, the art of crafting sigils, and the power of embracing the embodied divine.

Pam also talks about the centering magic of stars, and answers a listener question about what to do with a loved one’s old spell jars.

Our sponsors for this episode are Woodland Magic, the Many Moons 2025 Lunar Planner, TU·ET·AL, BetterHelp, ZOUZ Incense, Grimsby Hollow Meadery, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, and Snowy Owl Tea

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here, and all sorts of other bewitching goodies available in the Witch Wave shop.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#138 - Damsel Elysium, Intuition Musician

Damsel Elysium is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, and experimental sound and visual artist who uses double bass, violin, and original recorded sounds to explore alternative communication and connections with space, nature, and the unseen world. Their performances combine improvisational music-making, ritual, costume, and fantastical worldbuilding, giving the audience a sensation of being transported to another realm while staying rooted wholly in their bodies. Damsel’s EPs include 2024’s Whispers from Ancient Vessels and Whispers and Speakings, as well the score to the short horror film GLINT. Their LP softfalling will be out in 2025, and they are currently developing it in part via a multimedia exhibition at London’s Stage Gallery which is up now through November 27th.

In addition to that, Damsel has collaborated with and performed for FKA twigs and V&A Museum, they’ve created work for Tate Collective, they’ve created glass instruments for IITTALA, they’ve been commissioned by fashion brands such as Gucci and Simone Rocha, and they’ve composed for films which have entered Sundance film festival.

On this episode, Damsel discusses performance as ritual, the animism of instruments, and their intuitive approach to making music.

Pam also talks about seeking the light in dark times, and answers a listener question about how to change one’s luck.

Featured tracks in the episode:

Damsel Elysium “Shoreline” from Whispers from Ancient Vessels

Damsel Elysium “Whispers from Ancient Vessels – Nyokabi Kariuki Rework” from Whispers and Speakings

Damsel Elysium “Wide Eyed Bird Sings” from the GLINT Soundtrack

Our sponsors for this episode are Mithras Candle, BetterHelp, Rue and Vervain, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, and Snowy Owl Tea

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here, and all sorts of other bewitching goodies available in the Witch Wave shop.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#137 - Robert Shehu-Ansell of Fulgur Press

Robert Shehu-Ansell is a publisher, curator and independent scholar. Through his publishing company Fulgur Press he has represented esoteric artists in book form since 1992. These books are exquisitely produced, highly collectible, and deeply magical. From grimoires to artist monographs to tarot decks, everything Fulgur publishes is meticulously crafted with eye towards elegance and deluxe beauty. Their most recent publication is the first English language edition of Surrealist founder André Breton’s visionary 1957 art survey, Magic Art (L’Art Magique). They’ve also published the work of such art mages as Austin Osman Spare, Leonora Carrington, Ithell Colquhoun, and Jesse Bransford, to name but a few, and they have conducted numerous symposiums and exhibitions about occult art.

Robert is also the publisher of several series publications, including Black Mirror and Abraxas Journal, which has been described as ‘today’s pre-eminent voice for the serious study of occult and esoteric expression.’ Robert has been interviewed for such varied outlets as the BBC Culture Show, Dazed and Confused, and Boing Boing, and as an experienced public speaker, he also lectures on esoteric art of the 20th century, with a specific focus on Austin Osman Spare.

On this episode, Robert discusses the delights and challenges of publishing a legendary occult art survey, the magic of Surrealism, and how he came to specialize in talismanic books.

Pam also talks about her magical excursion to England, and answers a listener question about following the Wheel of the Year down under.

Our sponsors for this episode are Open Sea Design Co., BetterHelp, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, ZOUZ Incense, and Mithras Candle.

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here, and all sorts of other bewitching goodies available in the Witch Wave shop.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#136 - Joanna Ebenstein, Founder of Morbid Anatomy and Author of "Memento Mori"

Joanna Ebenstein is the founder and creative director of Morbid Anatomy, which is the world’s leading community that focuses on, among other things, the culture and contemplation of death. Morbid Anatomy has taken many forms since its founding in 2007. It’s been a wildly popular blog, a library, a museum, a project-in-residence at Green-Wood Cemetery, just to name a few, and it’s currently both an in-person gathering space in Brooklyn’s Industry City, as well as a thriving online community that features lectures, workshops, and merch, as well as in-person experiences including field trips, conferences, and other events.

An internationally recognized death expert, Joanna is the author of several books, including Anatomica: The Exquisite and Unsettling Art of Human Anatomy, Death: A Graveside Companion, and The Anatomical Venus. Her newest book is Memento Mori: The Art of Contemplating Death to Live a Better Life. She is also an award-winning curator, photographer, and graphic designer, and the teacher of the many times sold-out class, Make Your Own Memento Mori: Befriending Death with Art, History and the Imagination.

On this episode, Joanna discusses the value of ancestor veneration, her research on varying cultural attitudes about grief and loss, and how befriending death can lead to a better life.

Pam also talks about Samhain as time to contemplate the divinity of death, and answers a listener question about activism and the Goddess.

Our sponsors for this episode are Ritual + Shelter, TU·ET·AL soap and skincare, BetterHelp, Secrets of Romani Fortune-Telling out now from Weiser Books, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, Mithras Candle, and the Missing Witches Deck of Oracles out now from North Atlantic Books.

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here, and all sorts of other bewitching goodies available in the Witch Wave shop.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#135 - Judika Illes Returns! Author of "Witches: A Compendium"

Judika Illes is the author of numerous books devoted to spells, spirits, and witchcraft, including Encyclopedia of Spirits, as well as Pure Magic, Daily Magic, Encyclopedia of Witchcraft, Encyclopedia of Mystics, Saints, and Sages, and Magic When You Need It. Judika also was a significant contributor to the Witchcraft book Pam co-edited for Taschen’s Library of Esoterica Series, and she’s been a speaker at the Occult Humanities Conference as well.

Her newest literary offering, Witches: A Compendium, explores what a witch is and the different ways to be one. In it Judika Illes presents the history, mysteries, and diverse natures of witches from around the world. Featuring a who’s who ranging from famous—or infamous—historical witches such as Tituba, Sybil Leek, Aleister Crowley and popular fictional witches such as the Scarlet Witch, Agatha Harkness, and the Wicked Witch of the West, Witches: A Compendium celebrates witches in all their complicated glory.

Judika herself is a practicing witch who has been a professional tarot card reader for over three decades and is a certified aromatherapist. A native New Yorker, she teaches in the US and internationally, live and virtually, and is one of the world’s most knowledgeable and renowned experts in witchcraft.

On this episode, Judika discusses her favorite pop culture witches, bewitching Egyptian deities, and why the witch is a symbol of transgressive joy.

Pam also talks about her Occultober film and TV viewing plans, and answers a listener question about setting a protective magical boundary at work.

Our sponsors for this episode are Luna Lifted, The Modern Witches’ Confluence, BetterHelp, Woodland Magic, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, and Rue and Vervain

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#134 - Cécile McLorin Salvant, Enchanting Chanteuse

Welcome to Season 8 of The Witch Wave!

Cécile McLorin Salvant is a three-time Grammy-winning singer and composer, considered by many to be the Ella Fitzgerald/Sarah Vaughan/Billie Holiday/choose-your-own-iconic-vocalist of our time. The late opera legend Jessye Norman described Salvant as “a unique voice supported by an intelligence and full-fledged musicality, which light up every note she sings.” Salvant’s style and repertoire are extensive and expansive connecting vaudeville, blues, theater, jazz, baroque, pop, and folkloric music. She’s known as an eclectic curator, unearthing rarely recorded, forgotten songs with strong narratives, interesting power dynamics, unexpected twists, and humor. 

Salvant is widely admired and decorated with such awards as being the winner of the Thelonious Monk competition in 2010, the MacArthur fellowship (known in shorthand as the MacArthur Genius Award), and the Doris Duke Artist Award, in addition to the aforementioned multiple Grammys for Best Jazz Vocal Album. In addition to her stunning singing, Cécile is beloved for her visionary visual style, as well as for the tropes of mythology, magic, and monstresses which often show up in her original songs and her interpretations of existing ones. Her two most recent albums, Ghost Song (Nonesuch Records, 2022) and Mélusine (Nonesuch Records, 2023) include songs about supernatural love and mythic transformations, and her forthcoming album and animated feature, Ogresse, is a musical fable she describes as both a biomythography and an homage to the loa Erzulie.

Born and raised in Miami, Florida of a French mother and Haitian father, she started classical piano studies at 5, sang in a children’s choir at 8, and started classical voice lessons as a teenager. Salvant received a bachelor’s in French law from the Université Pierre-Mendes France in Grenoble while also studying baroque music and jazz at the Darius Milhaud Music Conservatory in Aix-en-Provence, France.

Salvant is also an accomplished visual artist, and her fantastical drawings, embroideries, and papercuttings can currently be seen up at Picture Room in Brooklyn through Nov 3, 2024. She is also on tour now, and will be performing at Carnegie Hall multiple times over the coming months.

On this episode, Cécile discusses how she learned to embrace her “weird” in her music and other work, her love of hybrid creatures and mystical monstresses, and her burgeoning interest in ancestral magic.

Pam also talks about voting as a means of counteracting tired old tropes about “diabolical” outsiders, and answers a listener question about getting to know the goddess Athena.

Cécile McLorin Salvant songs featured in this episode:

“Ghost Song” from Ghost Song (Nonesuch Records, 2022)

“Wuthering Heights” cover from Ghost Song (Nonesuch Records, 2022)

“Fenestra” from Mélusine (Nonesuch Records, 2023)

Our sponsors for this episode are Ritual + Shelter, The Vintage Storyteller, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, BetterHelp, Blackthorn’s Book of Sacred Plant Magic out now from Weiser Books, Mithras Candle, and The Missing Witches Deck of Oracles out now from North Atlantic Books.

We also have print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#133 - Suranne Jones, Bewitching BAFTA-winning Actor

This season finale of The Witch Wave features Suranne Jones, the award-winning English actor, producer, and series creator. She’s been nominated for several awards for acting and won a BAFTA for her starring role in the hit series Doctor Foster: A Woman Scorned. Some highlights from her decades long television career include starring roles in Gentleman Jack, Vigil, and Scott and Bailey, and she’s also appeared in such British television intuitions as Coronation Street and Doctor Who. She’s currently in production on a new Netflix thiller series called The Choice, which sees her starring as the British Prime Minister opposite Julie Delpy’s French president, so look for that in 2025. Suranne also has an illustrious theatre career, and has starred in such plays as Frozen, Orlando, and Beautiful Thing.

As producer, Suranne runs the TeamAkers Productions company with her husband Laurence Akers, and it’s this company that is responsible for the new docuseries, Suranne Jones: Investigating Witch Trials (which features our own Pam Grossman!) The series is currently airing in 2 parts on the UK’s Channel 4 on June 23rd and June 30th, and if you missed the first part not to worry as both will be streaming on the Channel 4 site as well.

On this episode, Suranne discusses what compelled her to make a witchcraft documentary, her personal relationship to magic, and the shapeshifting abilities that she brings to the craft of acting.

Pam also talks about why historical witch hunts are relevant to this present moment, and answers a listener question about revealing her witch self on a date.

Our sponsors for this episode are Ritual + Shelter, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, Nicole Marxen, BetterHelp, Snowy Owl Tea, Liza Fenster’s COMMUNION course, Sphere + Sundry, and The Queer Witches of Maude’s Paperwing Gallery

We also have brand new print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#132 - Cat Willett, "Women of Tarot" Author and Illustrator

Cat Willett is a Brooklyn-based artist. She has written, illustrated, and published two full-length books. The first is The Queen of Wands: The Story of Pamela Colman Smith, the Artist Behind the Rider-Waite Tarot Deck. Her newest book, Women of Tarot, An Illustrated History of Divinators, Card Readers, and Mystics is out next week. Cat is fascinated by tarot as a facet of art history, and her work aims to elevate the women behind its evolution. She’s dedicated the last few years to telling these magical stories in her published books, both of which feature her own research and gorgeous artwork.

Cat also makes illustrated comics about parenting, motherhood, gender, and animals, and she is a regular contributor to The Washington Post. Other clients and publications include The New York Times, Apple, Doc Martens, the Museum of Arts + Design, and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and she is available for select freelance work and projects as well.

On this episode, Cat discusses visionary tarot artists such as Pamela Colman Smith and Lady Frieda Harris, the illuminating power of illustration, and the divinely feminine history of divination.

Pam also talks about tarot’s impact on the arts, and answers a listener question about witchly concerns regarding a religious pre-school.  

Our sponsors for this episode are Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, Sphere + Sundry, BetterHelp, The Queer Witches of Maude’s Paperwing Gallery, and Snowy Owl Tea.

Please consider donating to Pam’s fundraiser for the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund

We also have brand new print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#131 - Kimberly Rodriguez, Author of "Incantations Embodied"

Kimberly Rodriguez (@poetagoddess) is a first-generation Indigenous Mexican artist and writer based in the Bay Area, CA. Her art reflects her journey toward reclaiming her indigenous roots and exploring different forms of self-expression. As an artist, Kimberly is deeply committed to creating work that is inclusive and accessible to all. She believes that art has the power to heal, connect, and inspire and strives to use her platform to promote positivity and self-love.

In addition to her art, Kimberly is also a writer and community activist. She is dedicated to using her talents and voice to create positive change and empower others to do the same. Her art and writing are a celebration of diversity, resilience, and the beauty and strength that can be found in all of us.

Kimberly’s new book, Incantations Embodied: Rituals for Empowerment, Reclamation, and Resistance, is an offering that combines her writing, art, activism, and magic. Incantations Embodied invites readers on a transformative journey of self-discovery and empowerment. It seeks to dismantle the oppressive narrative that has been ingrained in our collective consciousness, urging us to question and challenge the colonized structures that have kept us disconnected from our own truth. This also happens to be the first book chosen to be published by Spirit Bound Press, an independent publishing house devoted to fostering diverse voices in the spiritual community.

On this episode, Kimberly discusses her path to becoming an empowered and embodied bruja, the “undrowning” power of intentional words, and how we can all use magic to free ourselves from the capitalist colonial mindset.

Pam also talks about the musical connection between enchantment and incantation, and answers a listener question about bewitching songs.

Our sponsors for this episode are Mooonbody, Mithras Candle, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, Alive with Spirits out from Weiser Books, BetterHelp, The Queer Witches of Maude’s Paperwing Gallery, and Sphere + Sundry,

We also have brand new print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#130 - Pati Dubroff, Glamour Goddess

Pati Dubroff is an iconic, world-renowned makeup artist. She has worked with such glamazons as Margot Robbie, Kirsten Dunst, Elizabeth Olsen, Laura Dern, Christy Turlington, Priyanka Chopra, and Emma Watson to name but a few. She’s also collaborated with such photographic phenoms as Annie Leibovitz, Peter Lindbergh, and Tom Munro, and her artistry has been featured on countless covers, red carpets, photo shoots, and brand ambassadorships. She is an ambassador for Chanel beauty, and she has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers on social media thanks to her makeup tutorial videos which show that that glamour can be accessed and expressed by anyone at any age.

Pati is also a lifelong spiritual seeker, and has been mindfully integrating her bewitching craft into her professional life. She honors the sacredness of beauty in all facets of her life, and has developed her own unique practice of glamour magic. She works bi-coastally in NY and LA, and often accompanies clients globally. She also teaches makeup masterclasses, most recently doing so in Mumbai.

On this episode, Pati discusses the divine aspects of beauty, the secret to radiance at any age, and the power of manifesting childhood dreams.

Pam also talks about the magic of glamour, and answers a listener question about receiving signs from across the veil.

Our sponsors for this episode are Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, BetterHelp, Mithras Candle, Sphere + Sundry, and Snowy Owl Tea

We also have brand new print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here.

#129 - Christopher Marmolejo, Author of "Red Tarot"

Christopher Marmolejo is a Brown, queer, and trans writer, diviner, and educator. They use divination to promote a literacy of liberation, and their new book Red Tarot: A Decolonial Guide to Divinatory Literacy is an in-depth exploration of how tarot can be a tool of freedom, magical interrogation, and energetic support for anyone, and particularly for BIPOC folks. Christopher was born and raised in San Bernardino, California, among the pines, in community with the Serrano clan.

With nine-plus years of experience as a trained educator focused on cultivating classrooms of emancipatory possibility, they work with students around the world to plant and nurture the seed of a divinatory practice, finely weaving tarot, astrology, and curanderismo with critical, decolonial Black queer feminist epistemology. They offer tarot readings and astrology readings, as well limpia cleansing sessions, per their ancestral folk healing practices. They also teach many online workshops and write a splendid Substack newsletter called The Red Read.

On this episode, Christopher discusses their project of decolonizing the tarot, their ancestral magic practices, and the intrinsic non-binary magic of The Temperance card.

Pam also talks about entering her Empress phase, and responds to a follow-up message from an eclipse ritualist.

Our sponsors for this episode are Ritual + Shelter, Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, BetterHelp, Mithras Candle, Sphere + Sundry, and Snowy Owl Tea

We also have brand new print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#128 - Ron Regé, Jr., Cosmological Cartoonist

Ron Regé, Jr. is a Los Angeles-based cartoonist who began drawing and self-publishing comics in the early 1990s in Cambridge, MA. Though he came out of zine culture and the underground comics scene, his work took a distinctly mystical turn thanks to a spiritual awakening he had the early 2000s. From that point on, his comics turned cosmic, exploring ideas of the occult, esotericism, and magic all in his signature psychedelic style.

Though whimsical and whirling at first glance, Ron’s work belies decades of rigorous research and devoted inquiry into the workings of the unseen world. His books include The Cartoon Utopia, Halcyon, What Parsifal Saw, The Weaver Festival Phenomenon, Skibber Bee Bye and many more. His newest book, Shell Collection, out this week from Fantagraphics, gathers many of his monthly mini-comics which he’s been sending out to subscribers and Patreon backers over the last 8 years.

Ron’s comics and drawings have also appeared in hundreds of zines and comics anthologies. His illustration clients have included Nike, Sony, Tylenol, McSweeney’s, and The New York Times. And if that wasn’t enough, Ron is also the drummer for the celestial folk rock band, Lavender Diamond.

On this episode, Ron discusses his cosmological cartoons, his practice of creative channeling, and the many inspirations and influences behind his wondrous work.

Pam also talks about hermeticism and The Hermit, and answers a listener question about a big life decision.

Our sponsors for this episode are Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, Weiser Books, BetterHelp, Snowy Owl Tea, Sphere + Sundry, and Mithras Candle

We also have brand new print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to detailed show notes, bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave

#127 - Jodi Wille, Director of "Welcome Space Brothers" and "The Source Family"

Jodi Wille is a director and producer of the critically acclaimed documentary The Source Family and her brand new feature documentary Welcome Space Brothers which is about The Unarius Academy of Science. Her work explores people whose extraordinary true stories and creations leave us with new ways of seeing, and she has a special interest in so-called outside artists, alternative spiritual seekers, and radical intentional communities.

Jodi has a background in commercial, editorial, and rock band photography, as well as music video direction, working with artists like REM, Sparks, and Vincent Gallo. She also cofounded the book publishing companies Dilettante Press (1998), Process Media (2004), and Otherworld (2022), to explore otherworldly and countercultural realms, and she has editing several award-winning books, most recently co-authoring the illustrated book Family: The Source Family Scrapbook (2022, Otherworld with Sacred Bones).

Jodi has curated art exhibitions for The American Visionary Art Museum, Deitch Projects and others, and she’s curated numerous film festivals and cultural programs at institutions across the globe.

On this episode, Jodi discusses the radical visionaries behind the Unarius Academy of Science, the development of new religions, and how filmmaking has helped her explore mind-expanding ideas and experiences. (Make a tax-deductible donation to help fund Jodi’s film Welcome Space Brothers here)

Pam also talks about the difference between cults and positive alternative spiritual groups, and answers a listener question about a group ritual happening during the solar eclipse. (And you can check out details about the ritual here)

Our sponsors for this episode are Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, Mithras Candle, BetterHelp, Snowy Owl Tea, and Sphere + Sundry

We also have brand new print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here.

And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam’s monthly online rituals, and more! That’s patreon.com/witchwave