Wings of Steam

Early in the year there was discussion throughout the community over whether or not steampunk was dead. This was apparently spawned by a lull in the popularity of the word “steampunk” as a search term on Google. However, a look at Google Trends right now shows that steampunk is certainly NOT dead, and is, in fact, more popular than ever. Just as we have done in 2008, here we will take a look back at the last year and see just exactly how we have kept the steampunk community alive.

As with many things in this list, there were far too many steampunk events to mention, but arguably this year’s biggest and best was Steamcon in Seattle. Although not the first con specifically dedicated to steampunk, Steamcon seemed to set a new precedent for all future steampunk conventions. Too much happened to write about here, but there are many reports available on the aethernet.

The steampunk community was delighted when the Museum of the History of Science at Oxford University adknowledged our form of alternate history by running an exhibition of steampunk art and inventions by creators from around the world.

The CGSociety concluded their Steampunk Myths & Legends contest in Februrary. We were treated to beautiful videos and images, and the winning entries can be seen here.

October was declared Steampunk Month on Tor.com. Authors and bloggers from the steampunk community joined up with Tor’s staff to discuss everything steampunk and share short stories.

Two of the most anticipated steampunk novels this year were Leviathan, and Boneshaker. Set in World War I Europe, Leviathan, by Scott Westerfeld tells of Alek, an Austro-Hungarian prince on the run as his path crosses with Deryn, a common girl disguised as a boy to join the British Air Service. Boneshaker, by Cherie Priest takes place in the ruins of Civil War-Era Seattle. Briar Wilkes must rescue her son from zombies and airship pirates after he enters the city to clear his father’s name.

This year brought us the addition of two new periodicals. Steampunk Tales is a short-story fiction magazine released specifically for iPhone. Alternatively, exploring the non-fiction side of steampunk, Exhibition Hall made its debut this year as well. On a sad note, due to the depressed economy, The Willows, a magazine devoted to speculative and dark Victorian fiction, went out of business early in the year.

Abney Park was quite busy this year. Dancer and backing vocalist Finn Von Claret left the band, and was replaced by Jody Ellen. After months of delay, the anticipated new album Aether Shanties was finally released on December 1st.

Previously a solo act, Vernian Process spent the last year reinventing itself. With the addition of Martin Irigoyen in late 2008, VP is now a full-sized band, and have released a reworked version of their album, “Behold The Machine“.

Sepiachord released a compilation, “The Sepiachord Companion”, showcasing fifteen of today’s steampunk musical acts. Steampunk bigband Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society released their first album, “Infernal Machines”. Steam Powered Giraffe released their first album, “Album One”. The Clockwork Dolls played their first live show and released their first album, “Dramatis Personae“. Deadly Nightshade Botanical Society released their second album, “Accoutrements and Oddities”, as well as a Christmas EP, “Clockwork Carols”.

In the world of gaming Atlus online released it’s first title, a free steampunk MMORPG called Neo Steam: The Shattered Continent. The biggest flop of the year may have been Damnation, a steampunk shooter released on PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360. Our hopes for a great steampunk game were restored however with the announcement of the forthcoming game, Epic Mickey, along with some apocalyptic-looking concept art. Epic Mickey is expected to be released in September 2010.

A couple of web series made their debut. Riese, a production featuring top actors from the Sci-Fi genre, tells the story of a wandering traveler and her canine companion who are on the run from an evil religious order known as The Sect. Also, the League of S.T.E.A.M., steampunk ghostbusters, already famous for their con appearances, began documenting their comedic travails in “Adventures of the League of S.T.E.A.M.”

For new webcomics this year, check out The Continentals, about a group of special agents battling violent crimes, Sidewise, about a boy lost in time in an alternate Victorian London, and The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage, about Ada Lovelace and Charles Babbage teamed together as a crime-fighting duo.

There are scores of new steampunk websites out there, and three of them deserve mention here. Steampunk Empire is a social networking site just for steampunks where one can go to chat, post photos and video, and interact with other steampunks across the globe. Likewise, Dieselpunks.org has been created for the dieselpunks among us and on top of social networking, also features new and interviews in the worlds of both steampunk and dieselpunk. Finally, “Steampunk Events is a forum for advertising steampunk events anywhere in the world. Though currently a bit inactive, the site has much potential, as long as people start using it.

Now that you’re caught up on what’s been happening in steampunk, here’s a glimpse of what’s to come:

• Perpetual Steam Punk, a web series set in San Francisco.
• Steampunk Quarterly, a new fiction e-zine.
• A steampunk version of Hamlet, performed by the Butterfield 8 Theater Company in May.
• A miniseries version of Neal Stephenson’s “The Diamond Age“.
• A movie version of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, starring Natalie Portman.

We here at Wings of Steam hope everyone had a great year and will have an even better next year!

Greetings, readers!

It has come to my attention that time has slipped away from us, and there hasn’t been anything new or fascinating posted to entertain you in quite some time. May I be the first to extend my deepest apologies- I assure you, there are good reasons. For one, I am currently caught up in my studies, and have very little time to contribute. Captain Jules, on the other hand, happens to be in a place where the internet is denied to him, except during the times he makes a great journey to gain access. It’s a very sorry state to be in.

At any rate, I can promise that I do have a few articles in the works. A follow-up on my Steampunk Interior Design article, as well as something on Air Kraken Day, which occurred in the not-so-distant past.  Also, the convention season will soon be upon us, so I hope you’re all keeping your wardrobes up-to-date. Har har.

Alright, I believe I’m done here, terrible puns and all. I shall post again soon, fates willing.

Always passing strange,

Oddessa Gooding

There’s no doubt steampunk as a subculture has gained a lot of momentum. But stating that steampunk has gone mainstream is as rediculous as claiming that it has jumped the shark or has otherwise died.

As with any sub-category of culture that begins with an underground following, steampunk is bound to become popular. And how could it not? There are many reasons steampunk will continue to grow, apart from the fact that punk’d creations look damn cool. But will it ever become mainstream? Except for cameo appearances in movies (like Stardust and The Golden Compass) no. I challenge you to walk up to ten random people on a city street and ask them what they think of steampunk. See how many even know what it is. Of course, the internet is a different story, but despite what some people may desperatley choose to believe, the internet is not the world.

Take anime as an example. Anime is hugely popular on the internet, and both online and in real life, many people love anime. But not everyone who watches anime wears kitty ears or refers to themselves as -san or -chan. Those who do are generally seen as strange by the community at large. Steampunk is the same way. In fact, at a recent anime convention, being one of only six steamers there, I spoke to many people of how they liked steampunk, but found that none of them took an active part in the subculture.

Another example is goth culture. Goth originated in the Eighties and has always existed outside the mainstream. In the mid-Nineties it became popular and close to mainstream thanks to stores like Hot Topic. However, true goth culture evolved with the development of industrial music and cyberpunk, staying just outside the mainstream the entire time. Steampunk, being so closely connected to goth culture in the first place, will likewise evolve in such a way. However, steampunk also has an advantage over goth culture in the fact that good-looking steam gear is expensive. Unless you want plastic gears on your eyepiece, high quality accessories often cost hundreds of dollars, which won’t yield enough sales to keep Big Businesses satisfied.

As for steampunk Having jumped the shark, critics claim that the ideals of the movement are lost and forgotten and now it’s just another trend. It is true that modern steampunk seems to be more about “steam” than “punk”, but really, has it ever been any different? Since the first modern steampunk works were published in the Sixties and Seventies, it was the look and style of the genre was the first to be duplicated. Just like punk, there will always be people who are in it for the asthetics and those who are in it for the ideals. And, just like punk, there will always be people who claim it to be dead and those who claim it to be alive.

Steampunk as a genre is a hundred years old. If you are worried that the subculture is just a passing fad, fear not, it is here to stay. And really, if is does slip from popularity, what are they going to tell you?

That your clothing style is outdated?