WYRD #2 [THIRD PRINTING]

TITLE - WYRD #2 [THIRD PRINTING]

EDITED BY - WILL WRIGHT 

GENRE - MAGICK / SHAMANISM / MEDITATION / MAGICK / RUNES / OCCULT

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN - UNITED KINGDOM 

A5/68 PAGES/FULL-COLOUR/PERFECT-BOUND

PRICE - £7.00 + SHIPPING FROM THE WYRD WEBSITE

Having read and been greatly impressed by the first issue of “Wyrd” (see my review here.), I was very grateful to be offered a copy of issue 2 by the Wyrd team. This issue was first published in Midsummer 2021, and is now in its third printing dating from November 2021 (a testament to its quality and popularity) and contains articles, art, photography and practical magic guides.

This issue has a strong emphasis on runes, and the lead article by Will Wright is an intelligent and thorough essay on the creation of his own runic font as a positive response to the appropriation on runes by far-right hate groups. Striking colour images of the font accompany the piece, and one of the runes, in fact a “bindrune” which symbolises shielding and defence, adorns the eye-catching cover of issue 2. A T-shirt featuring this design is also available from the Wyrd website.

Following his Introductory article on handrunes in issue one, Magnus Stokoe returns to greatly expand the concept with lists of contemporary meanings, practical techniques and how to develop the art further. Jim Bidwell’s “Apocalyptic Shaman’s Death Mask” is a striking sculpture made from pieces of junk which resembles a kind of futuristic skeleton, much like the Terminator in its true form. The piece is based on the Siberian death masks found in a tomb in Russia in 2015. There is a bold colour photo of the mask in all its glory.

The centrepiece of the issue is Will Wright’s “Ritual & Rave”, which explores the connection between raves and altered states of consciousness. Throwing it back to the birth of raving in the late ‘80/early ‘90s (I remember them well) and his own degree of fame as “Da Shaman”, a noted figure and event organiser in the scene during the early 2000s. Wright’s vivid text evokes the positive chaos and shared experience of these events. In the second half of the article Will takes a deep dive into the practical application of ritual magick with regards to the creation of a modern rave, and shares some of his Rave Art.

Mr. Punch makes a welcome return, and this time his creators Wyldheart & Wright have given him two besties who are just as terrifying as him - Mare-E Mare, a hobby ‘oss like the Mari Lwyd and the troll-like Tavis, who hails from Scotland. These models are incredibly well-made and it’s a pleasure (albeit a squirm-inducing one) to share their adventures, which include a foraging trip for turkey-tail mushrooms and afternoon tea in an antiques shop, in beautiful colour photos. Snippets of the history of trolls and the Mari Lwyd are included and there’s also a note about the health benefits of turkey-tail mushrooms. As a Welshman I am overjoyed that our very own Mari is so popular at the moment.

This issue’s regular features include a “Wyrd Basics” primer “Exercise of Will” about how we can learn to take control of our own will, and Claire Wyldheart’s “Trance Visions” recounts an intensely vivid vision sparkedpff by her disocvery of a cat’s skull. This leads Wyldheart into deeper areas including research into the theory that certain ancient civilisations on Earth were created by visiting aliens from Sirius. The issue is rounded off with a look at Dean Dean’s beautiful rune carvings.

Issue 1 was an excellent publication but issue 2 exceeds even that high bar. As I said in my issue 1 review, nobody involved in the creation of “Wyrd” is playing: this content is a snapshot into their real lives. For anyone not versed in magick and the occult, the zine is still an informative read which is best approached with an open mind. I don’t know much about the subjects discussed here but I’m very interested, especially when it’s this well written and presented. Production values are consistently high - “Wyrd” is glossy with substance. I particularly like the continuity across the issues; the contributors are obviously working together towards a goal and at no time does the content feel randomly put together. If you want to expand your mind, get “Wyrd”!