There’s something you should know. I love Harry Potter. I love everything about the series, from the humour of the characters, the twists and turns of plot and the wizard vocabulary, to the incorporation of well known features of literature and the escapism and richness of the magical world. Why, oh why, was I born a Muggle?
A few years back I stumbled upon Mugglenet, a fansite relating to all things Potter. It’s a fantastic site that kept fans up to date with all the latest goss relating to the books and movies, as well as articles submitted by the public relating to HP based topics and theories. Now that the series has come to close I was keen to see if Mugglenet was still thriving, and I was pleased to discover that it is.
Today I was checking out my old faves when I noticed a new (to me) section called Wizard Rock, which is a thriving genre of music inspired by Harry Potter and pioneered by Harry & The Potters. Until today, Harry & The Potters were a tiny blip on my music radar – I’d heard of them, but not explored any of their stuff before.
Here’s what I now know about them:
Brothers Paul and Joe DeGeorge are the only members of the group and their first performance was an impromptu gig in their backyard in which they performed seven songs that they made up as they went along – six of which appeared on their debut album Harry & The Potters (2003). Their music is based on events that transpire during the Harry Potter series, with most lyrics focusing on Harry’s point of view.
While I don’t think their music is fantastic, I still think they’re pretty cool. Here’s why:
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They play the majority of their gigs in libraries.
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They have their own gear and sound system, with an emphasis on DIY music making, recording and production.
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They are active promoters of literacy – as a teacher, I think this can only be a good thing, and I love the fact that in turn, young people have not only been promoting the band, they’ve also been promoting HP and the importance of reading.
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For many fans, the music is not as important as the exhuberance displayed on stage. Apparently, their live gigs are loads of fun, with the guys dressing up as Harry Potter and encouraging audience participation.
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They don’t take themselves too seriously.
I also love the success story that’s bloomed from a couple of guys mucking around in the backyard one afternoon. Little did they know that it would lead to the birth of Wizard Rock, a genre described by the Washington Post as “an escape into a different world – a world of non-judgmental fun where grown-ups dress as wizards, evil is vanquished by song, and reading is cool.”
According to Mugglenet, there are now over 200 Wizard Rock bands – here are some of my favourite names inspired by The Boy Who Lived:
Severus & The Death Eaters*
Ginny & The Weasleys
Gred and Forge
Draco & The Malfoys
The Moaning Myrtles
The Whomping Willows
The Vanishing Cabinet
The Mudbloods
Hogwarts, A History
The Remus Lupins
Accio Brain
Justin Finch-Fletchly
Loony & The Lovegoods
Padfoot & Prongs
Romilda Vain & The Chocolate Cauldrons
Roonil Waslib
Unfortunately I don’t have mp3s for most of these as I’m working on a temperamental laptop that I’m about ready to throw in the drink, and as my connection is even slower than usual for some reason, if I waited to download them all this post would never see the light of day. So you’ll have to go forth and accio them for yourselves.
Yule Ball – Harry & The Potters
The Wrath Of Hermione – Harry & The Potters
For more info on Wizard Rock, go here.
And remind me never to use bullets in my posts again. They cause all kinds of formatting nightmares (that I still haven’t quite fixed) and give me the irrits big time.
*Severus Snape was my favourite character from the beginning, followed closely by Ron. I was so glad that Snape turned out the way that he did, and I felt vindicated for defending him when Harry revealed that his son was named Albus Severus “after two of the bravest men I’ve ever known”. Do I know the series a little bit too well? Probably. But there’s worse out there than me. People who start Wizard Rock bands, for instance…am kidding, love your work guys.
Oh joy! Found out the other day that Irish lads 
It All Started With Carbon Monoxide 