April 20, 2001
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Dave Simon, Elizabeth Laird, and Beyond Joy are mem
bers of the Pagan group.
A profile: The Pagan
Mysticism Group
Donion Moore
STAFF WRITER
"Paganism is more of a
way of life," said Elizabeth
Laird, Guilford sophomore
and one of the founders of the
Pagan Mysticism Group.
Laird, as well as many
other students on campus,
openly practices one of many
forms of Paganism.
One club member de
fined Paganism as "Earth-ven
erating belief systems, which
believe in the existence of a
natural force called magick as
well as the human ability to
make use of magick. Most
forms of paganism are poly
theistic. However, not all Pa
gans believe in many deities or
any deities. Like Christianity,
Paganism has many different
paths. Unlike Christianity,
the various paths of Paganism
do not share belief in a com
mon deity. Paganism is a posi
tive, self-reflective religion. I
think spirituality, religion,
and the way I live my life are
far too integrated to separate."
The group currently has
around 20 members. It devel
oped over the course of the se
mester through the concerns
and interests of its members.
Membership is open to all in
terested members of the
Guilford College community
regardless of religious prac
tice.
They meet at the Hut on
Wednesdays at 9:00 p.m. and
have tea, lectures, and discus-
Features
sions on Pagan issues and up
coming fall semester events.
The group also plans to work
in partnership with other
groups in the area that share
similar interest.
They hope to soon be rec
ognized as an official club by
getting their constitution
passed through the student
senate.
According to Guilford jun
ior Beyond Joy, also a group
member and founder, "The
central purpose of the Pagan
Mysticism Group is to provide
a pagan religious organization
for the student body of
Guilford College and a source
of religious diversity. In doing
so we hope to promote social
justice, religious tolerance,
and pagan awareness. We in
tend to offer education to the
greater Guilford community
regarding, paganism, general
mysticism, environmentalism,
and magick theory."
Laird stated, "We are ac
tive in community service
with the intent of improving
the Guilford College commu
nity in addition to the greater
community as a whole."
If you would like to know
more about Paganism, there
are several websites that offer
accurate information, two sug
gested by the group members
are www.witchvox.com/basics/
wfaq.html and witchsweb.com.
If you would like to talk to a
group member you can contact
Elizabeth Laird at x 3538.
The Guilfordian
Muzak Theorists:
Softward
Hunter Bowen
STAIX WRITER
"It's more like a direction than
a place for crazy people," explains
Guilford senior Marc Bernstein of
the name Softward the band he
formed with fellow Guilfordians
Kevin Holmes and Nabil Ahmed
three years ago.
As Holmes recounts, "I thought
of nothing for two weeks but possible
band names, none of which anyone
liked...then one evening Nabil
stepped onto the front porch where
we were relaxing with friends and
rolls out 'Softword,' and everyone just
LEAH KEFALOS
nodded
coolly in
agreement."
At this,
Ahmed adds
that
Bernstein
immediately
amended
the name to
"Softward."
This
kind of inter
action
among the
three is com
mon. In fact,
it occurs to
me during
the inter
view, all
three seated
on a couch in
their Softloft
the band's
home studio
that this is just how they create
their music. One introduces a phrase
or melody to the other two, the other
two run with it. In the end; what
started out as a simple melodic idea
of one member becomes a magnum
opus of the trio. Although, as they
admit, Ahmed and Holmes are the
primary songwriters, Bernstein pro
vides most of the rhythm.
The collaboration of the three
began in 1997 with their infamous
Muzak Theory show on WQFS. The
show not only showcased their mu
sical inspirations which range
from post-rock, avant-garde
electronica, and kraut rock to '7os
prog rock, punk rock and metal
but served as a musical experiment
of sorts with the three stringing to
gether two hours worth of material
as one piece of music. Often they
played more than one piece at a time,
perhaps mixing and scratching spo
ken word or German polka albums
over Kraftwerk.
In the spring of 1999, they de
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The boys of the band.
Page 9
cided to take their experiment out
of WQFS and play live with instru
ments for Serendipity. Performing as
the Muzak Theory Ensemble before
a packed Leak Room audience, they
played an hour-long, improvised set
to a film they had made and edited a
week earlier.
"We were bored with only us
ing drums, bass, and a guitar to make
music," explains Ahmed, "so we ex
plore other instruments and noise
makers and even switch up instru
ments among one another during the
writing and performance of songs."
The following spring, after a
nine-month hiatus, the three con-
things out of our amps."
Since that show, the band's fan
base has grown significantly as they
have played more frequently in the
area. Last summer Softward re
leased a four-song demo CD on their
own (available at Gate City Noise).
It has traveled far and wide since
then, landing in the hands of some
important people in the indi-rock
world. In June, Softward plans to
record with Matt Clark of Joan of Arc
in New York City, an enormous boost
for the band. According to Bernstein,
they have 15 -20 songs ready to
record.
Aside from a full-length al
bum and several gallery shows in
the works, Softward hopes to con
tinue making music as diligently
and as creatively as ever. "We live
together, so we play as much as pos
sible," say the boys, "but more than
anything we want to share with
people in the area and beyond just
what can be done and is done with
music when you use your imagina
tion."
vened again
with the ad
dition of pal
"Nathan
Stambaugh
to put to
gether an
other Seren
dipity per
formance,
this time as
Softward
and with
pre-written,
more struc
tured songs
as well as
another
film. "We re
fined and re
strained our
selves," says
Holmes of
their sound.
"We don't
like to shoot