The 13th Hour: Dark Wave Playlist
The 13th Hour
The 13th Hour is a collection of goth poetry from several volumes of books of shadows written by James Ross Spencer II written between 1980-the present, set to dark wave, new romantics, ambient, techno and goth rock music written and performed by James Spencer with noted studio musicians making up the dark wave Goth band The 13th Hour.
In 1985 while James was performing around the Southland of California as the keyboardist, co-composer and back-up singer of the new wave band In Common Hours, James formed The 13th Hour, as composer-lyricist, lead singer, keyboardist and orchestrator. Performing for 3 years James disassembled the band to focus on his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees in voice and keyboard performance graduating with highest honors from California State University (BM '92, MM '95)
After forming Spencer Artist Development, James assembled the choicest studio musicians of dark wave music from Southern California, New Orleans, Savannah, London and Edinburgh to re-record and re-master these mysterious, sensual, goth tracks for a modern audience, free of charge as a sacred gift to fans of Dark Wave music and metaphysics.
Influences on James' dark wave style include: Clan of Xymox, Crüxshadow, The Cure, Siouxsie and the Banchees, Book of Love, Dead Can Dance, Tears for Fears, Eurythmics, Thompson Twins, Pet Shop Boys, Soft Cell, Sisters of Mercy, Ministry, David Bowie, and Bauhaus.
Most of the tracks were mastered at:
Adamos Recordings: Westminster, CA
Théâtre des Vampyrs: New Orléans, LA
Stirling Masters: Edinburgh, Scotland
Chaeronea: London, England
The 13th Hour was named for the fact the original 4 members were all born on Friday the 13th.
James Spencer: (Feb 13) Composer-Lyricist, Lead Vocalist, Keyboardist, Orchestrator-Arranger
Devin Shadows: (Oct 13) Guitar, Lead Vocals, Violin, Flute
Marc-André Favrier: (July 13) Bass, Keyboards
Joel Krieg: (Jan 13): Drums, Back Vocals
The 13th Hour is a sacred initiation. So pour the absinthe, light the frankincense, dim the tiffany lamps, and step through the veil.
The 13th Hour: Dark Wave Music written by James Spencer
James Spencer
The 13th Hour: a Book of Shadows of Gothic Victorian poetry written by James Ross Spencer II and set to dark wave music by James Spencer and the band The 13th Hour.
James Spencer
Promo Photo for The 13th Hour (The Roxy, LA, February 1986)
The 13th Hour Albums (Tracks Available Youtube)
The 13th Hour
Wilting Violets
Raven's Lament
Originally recorded on James' Birthday week of Feb 13-16 in Southern California, James created the new album art work using AI software from original sketch ideas by Goth artist, Chance Lacey.
The new art work was created by James Spencer in February of 2025 depicting warlock Sir James Spencer sipping tea during a thunder storm in Edinburgh Scotland.
Memorable songs on this albums include: Sir James and Sebastian, Absinthe and Eternal Night, Ethan's Hunger, Heaven's Eyes are Blind, and The 13th Hour.
In 2025 James wrote several additional tracks that were re-mastered and recorded to The 13th Hour channel.
Raven's Lament
Wilting Violets
Raven's Lament
The second original album release of The 13th Hour was released on Epic but is sadly no longer in print. However all tracks are re-mastered and reworked.
The original 2nd and final album of the original line up of James, Devin, Marc and Joel was released in October of 1986.
Memorable tracks included: Raven's Lament, February Brings the Rain (James' favorite), Friday the 13th, Blackworth Manor (Joel's favorite), Bela Lugosi is NOT Dead (Marc's favorite), and Gaslight and Shadow (Devin's favorite)
There was a deep period of sadness when the band broke up to pursue university and expanded music careers.
The brotherhood is united in a shared love of Gothic Victorian U.K., gothic romance and Penny Dreadfuls, pagan rites of warlocks and Victorian Mystery Schools and the Occult and a love of 1980s dark wave music, classical music and the art works of John Atkinson and his son Arthur Grimshaw.
To the memory of Marc-André Favrier (died in 2020 due to complications from Covid)
and
Joel Krieg (died 2018 of cancer)
Devin and I lost touch after many moves, last I heard he is living in the U.K. and teaching guitar, and string instruments at a music conservatory.
Wilting Violets
Wilting Violets
Wilting Violets
Wilting Violets is the first studio album created by James Spencer in 2024-2025 with talented studio musician artists from his school at Spencer Artist Development.
Notable songs include: Pumpkin Jack, Proteus, Max in Wax, and Dale the Embalmer (created for the movie documentary Song of the Cicada about James' mortuary embalmer friend Dale Carter of Galveston, TX --the movie won several awards at film festivals in the US and Europe).
James would like to thank the specific members of the The 13th Hour family:
Jerry Adamowitz: Sound Engineer/Mastering
Camille Dumas: Female haunting lead vocals
Jarrod Darson: Sampling and vocal effects
Jade Loretti: My New Orlean's "Tituba"
Wilting Violets was mostly written during the Covid shut downs and the painful loss of friends to Covid during those years including original bassist Marc, jazz pianist Bradley Young, and Liana Tewles at Stirling Masters.
Nursery
Nursery
Wilting Violets
Nursery is James' magnum opus to his inner child.
As a child Jimmy was not only a virtuoso pianist who could play Mozart at age 5 but also a violinist, mandolinist, harpsichordist and vocalist.
A left hander south paw born on Friday the 13th, James was always psychic-intuitive, talked to ghosts over tea and became metaphysical studies early in life.
Noted Songs: Nursery, Tea Time With Jimmy, Flowers in the Attic, and Jesse's Nightmare (written for Scream Fest and Mark Patton of Nightmare on Elm Street II fame) and Curious Goods (dedicated to life long friends Louise Robey, Fred Mollin and John D. le May of the famed 80s tv series Friday the 13th.)
The Cove
Nursery
The Cove
The Cove is dedicated to the memory of brave LGBT men and women living in Victorian London, and mystery schools including The Brothers of Chaeronea, and The Golden Dawn.
The album is also dedicated to James friends and actors on the tv show Dante's Cove including Josh Berresford who has been battling Cancer.
Noted songs on The Cove: Tituba, Brothers of Chaeronea, Sun Treasum, and The Lighthouse.
SHADOWS
Nursery
The Cove
Currently still in creation, James has been spending most of 2025 transcribing all his over 5000 goth poetry into leather bound book of shadows for his Gothic Victorian home library and coming up with new concepts for songs for The 13th Hour Channel.
Recent 2025 events include:
Psychic Night with leadings psychics/metaphysicians at the Newhall Mansion in Piru, CA (July, 2025)
Paranormal Investigations: Queen Mary, Long Beach CA (Feb-March 2025)
The 13th Hour at Castle Ybor, Florida
Absinthe 1313: (set for October 2025)
Knott's Scary Farm (set for October 2025) James of 13th Hour as guest artist, opening night.