Live music, performed by talented musicians, is always entertaining. Some gigs, though, are special.

The commuterland of the South East of England, below London, out along the river Medway and the north Kent coast, is not an area over-associated with mystery or legend. Local tales there are, of course, but the sweeping grandeur and tragic history of the Scottish Highlands, or the wild, treacherous moors of Yorkshire, or even the stony glories of the Cotswolds - somehow these other places manage to seize the imagination in a way that the sleepy dormtory stockbroker towns of the south east never quite equalled. To most people, the most enduring features of this area are the aging commuter trains to London...

Not exactly a place you would normally go looking for vampires...
So, there I am, standing by the Medway Viaduct, indulging my own fascination for old bridges...
When out from beneath the road bridge, turning sharply towards the shore and soaring 30 feet above the murky waters swirling beneath the railway girders, a vampyre van appeared, it's crew of daywalkers waving madly for the camera as I grabbed a quick snapshot.

The Vampyre ConneXion was coming to the Medway,
and Inkubus Sukkubus were invited to entertain them!

	Vampyres to the left of us...
	...and zombies to the right of us

Somehow, I just knew this was going to be one of the good ones.

First up were The Scary Bitches, sadly due to monumental chaos on the M1 I was too late to catch their show. Next came The Faces Of Sarah, who've played at quite a few IS gigs in recent years.

I arrived just as their set began, and quickly wandered into the main hall to hear them, meeting up with Tony, Candia & Adam in the process.

As is customary, Candia duetted with them on Misery, as usual, the result was superb.

There was a pause between the bands, time for an elegant stroll round the Vampyre Market in the next room.

Mistress of the Vampyres...	Dealers in souls of the damned	Beware the killer guitar!

At this point, the soul dealers were passing out some rather tasty ghoulish sweets, just the thing to raise the blood-lust before the command performance.

Soon enough, the assembled throng of the darkly gifted gathered once more in the main hall, fangs barely hidden, all senses alert to savour the musical feast to come.

The set was a shortened version of the Camden one, the only really notable exception being 'We Belong With The Dead'. Reflecting the mood of the audience, the entire set was up-beat, with a two-way flow of enthusiasm you could feel moving back and forward between the band and the vampyres. Of course all of the band's classic vampire songs were there, including the exquisite 'Vampyre Kiss' from the long ago 'Beltaine' album.

Adding to the fun, Candia managed to fall over at one point, though in true showbiz style it didn't stop her singing! It may have raised questions about the wisdom of taking to the cable-strewn stage in heels high enough to be used as crucifix nails, though... <inquisitorial gryn>

And so it went, with the audience and band reacting and responding to each other, the energy steadily building. The full set was: Wytches, Smile of Torment, The Rape Of Maude Bowen, I Am The One, Take My Hunger, Vampyres, Away With The Faeries, Heart Of Lilith, Lucifer Rising, Belladonna and Aconite, the main set ending in a climactic Vampyre Erotica and Leveller. The band had put an enormous amount of energy into the performance - it was all too easy to forget this was a back room in a small hotel - and as a result they were pretty knackered by the time the main set was over. At this point Candia stepped down off the stage, wandered into the crowd, put an arm round my neck and begged us all to let them go to the oh-so-inviting bar at the back of the room... ...cruely, though, we demanded more music, and so were treated to a spectacular version of Paint It Black. And then we all went to the bar!

The Interviewer	The Lady In Blue	Scary Bitches!
All Tied Up	Friendly Vampyre Elder

Now, there are certain things that it is said one should not do at a vampyre convention. I mean, one simply does not speak of genetically modified blood, for example, it's just not done. Likewise, some would regard it unwise for a mortal friend of the dark gifted to fall asleep in such company, especially if doing so results in a tempting display of warm, blood-rich flesh. Most of the kindred posess wills of iron, but there will always be some who are tempted, and so it was this night, as the lady formerly known as Charlotte Sometimes found herself unexpectedly summoned to the ranks of the undead...