Blackened Marginalia

The journal 'Glossator: Practice and Theory of the Commentary' has issued a call for proposals. Or rather, it has spewed forth anguished wails and tortured howls for proposals: the proposals are for contributions to a themed issue on Black Metal, to be published in the fall of 2012. The volume's editors are Nicola Masciandaro and Cyclonopedia author Reza Negarestani. Do read the call, as the call itself is already an extremely interesting gloss on the genre. Deadline: March 1st, 2009.

I must say I am sorely tempted to answer the call with some ghostly gurgling of my own.

However, Valter is a persona, a mask:

"Masks, always fabricated secretly and destroyed or hidden after use, transform the officiants into gods, spirits, animal ancestors, and all types of terrifying and creative supernatural powers. (...) The eruption of phantoms and strange powers terrifies and captivates the individual. He temporarily reincarnates, mimics, and identifies with these frightening powers and soon, maddened and delirious, really believes that he is the god as which he disguised himself, cleverly or crudely, in the beginning." (Roger Caillois, "Man, Play And Games").

The mask speaks, whispers, mumbles and moans only through the blog. The blog is its "arena, card-table, magic circle, temple, stage, screen, tennis court, court of justice", its "playground, forbidden spot, isolated, hedged round, hallowed, within which special rules obtain." (Huizinga, Homo Ludens). Publishing in another medium, even in such a wonderful journal as Glossator, would mean a recontextualization of the mask's utterances which is sure to affect its message, even if its occult nature would be respected.

But then again: "No-one knows what may not burst forth from behind the mask." (Elias Canetti, "Crowds And Power")