Ok, maybe the title of this post is a bit deceiving as it’s not technically Halloween this weekend. But, when a holiday falls on a measley Thursday night, what are you to do?! Celebrate the weekend before AND the weekend after, of course! This year our calendars are full of pre-Halloween parties, especially on Saturday the magical 26th- everything from masquerades to warehouse raves! Plus, we’ve gathered a bunch of the best (non-halloweeny) concerts going on this Thurs-Sun!
#10 Chat Logs, Heaven’s Gate,Unstoppable Death Machines, Banned Books, Video Daughters @ Shea Stadium (SAT 9 PM) $?
We were extremely impressed with Heaven’s Gate‘s new “powergaze” album Transmuting (out today viz Inflated Records) and can bet that they’ll flesh their new songs out with whole new level of intensity live. Catch them among this impressive lineup at Shea on Saturday.
#9 Boys Noize @ Output (THURS 9 PM) $15-30
Anyone who knows the UK’s EDM DJ Boyz Noize knows that he knows how to party. Expect this show to go LATE.
#8 Questlove, How To Dress Well, Jeremy Ellis @ BAM (SAT 8 pm)
Questlove leads this festival, called the “Electronium,” an exploration of modern electronic sounds as an art form. How to Dress Well headlines with his hushed, personal brand of R&B.
#7 Thee Oh Sees, The Blind Shake, OBN IIIs @ 285 Kent Ave (Sun 8:30 PM) $15
Thee Oh Sees are one of our favorite bands ever, and wouldn’t you know it they’re playing here in Brooklyn this Sunday. Put on your moshing boots, because it’s time to get rowdy in everyone’s favorite DIY venue to their garage punk vibes. Check out a video I took of them performing in a backyard at SXSW 2011!
#6 Beats Antique @ Irving Plaza (FRI 9 PM) $20
Festival-hoppers Beats Antique will be performing their gypsy pop sound at Irving Plaza on Friday (belly dancer included)- a tempting alternative to all of the Halloween hype.
#5 Astronaughty Halloween @ Paper Box (SAT 9 PM) $15 / 20
Stay local and head to the Paper Box for a Halloween fiesta with live music from Swiss DJs & Producer Duo The Stereo Youth and Brooklyn’s own Yung Will.
#4 Fox & Jane Presents Halloween Party @ The Well (SAT 9 PM) $FREE
A free party at The Well? Sweet! What to expect? Music by FrankMusik and special guest July Starr, awesome drink specials all night, a costume contest with prizes, and a photo booth.
#3 Fifth Annual Masquerade Macabre @ Grand Harmony Palace (Sat 9 PM) $20
Gemini & Scorpio are one of NYC’s ecclectic and theme-driven underground art party organizations. So this shebang is going to take itself seriously and attendees will be decked out in masks of all varieties. If you’re going to make the trek into the city, think classy and ditch the stripper costume because what awaits you is a “celebration of the extravagant and the grotesque…an all-night spectacle of atmosphere, costumery and diverse entertainments…an explosion of live music, dancing, circus arts, and late-night revelry, snake-charmed into an absinthe-fueled early-morning speakeasy.”
#2 The Rub Halloween Party @ The Bell House (SAT 9 PM) $10 – $15
The New York Press calls The Rub‘s traveling parties “The Best in New York.” The Bell House is one of the most fun and mellow party destinations in all of Brooklyn, so we’re betting that this party is will be banging.
#1 Warehouse of Horrors (A BangOn! Halloween Party) @ 299 Meserole Ave (SAT 9 PM) $40
From the excellent party producers BangOn! comes their infamous Halloween event. At the same 40,000 sq ft warehouse where they hosted NYE last year and where Arcade Fire played two shows last weekend, they’ll have indoor stages and a tented outdoor silent disco with dueling DJs atop art cars. What else??? A full-size haunted house will be full of one-way mirrors, trap doors, and plenty more thrills. There will be specialty cocktails, vendors, snacks, live suspension shows, scary art installations, aerial acrobatics, live body painting, and trick-or-treating. What kind of treats will you be looking for? You’ll have to show up to find out.
