Photos from "Convention Hell" at Convention Hall, 10/31/15

Screaming Females as X

What Were You for Halloween?

Asbury Park's Dark City Entertainment and Promotions ramped up their Halloween covers show this year, moving it from the friendly confines of Wonder Bar to the cavernous Convention Hall and adding Screaming Females to the formerly all-local bill. With the stands in the space hidden behind blood red curtains, inverted crosses hanging from the ceiling, and coffins adorning the stage, Convention Hall had the feel of a purpose-built SRO venue decked out for Halloween. Costumed partiers filed in past the Dark City / Arcade Radio step and repeat banner for red carpet-style pictures, and they just kept coming as Convention Hall eventually packed out pretty nicely.

Ether Sunday / Yawn Mower opened as Nirvana, bringing Angie Sugrim out for one song and then ending their set with the destruction of their instruments during "Sliver." Dentist played it, probably, the least straight of any band doing a zombified Green Day. Billie Joe Armstrong was split into his masculine (Justin) and feminine (Emily) halves, and Dentist put their own twist on several Dookie classics. Des and The Swagmatics delivered an ambitious, super hero-themed and pretty amazing set as Stevie Wonder. They brought out horns, backup singers, dancers, and Sandy Mack. Jeff Plate, Pete Steinkopf, and members of The Parlor Mob had the crowd singing along to the blockbuster hits of Hall and Oates as Hall (Plate) and Oates and Oates and Oates and Oates.

Screaming Females went on just after 11:30 as X. They didn't break character for a second, Marissa Paternoster doing her best disaffected and blasé Exene and King Mike singing all of the John Doe parts. The late set went to Lost In Society as The Clash. Frontman Zach Moyle put his usual wild energy into a sing along set to close things out.

While Convention Hall is no Avery Fisher Hall in terms of acoustics, the night left me wanting to see more events in the space. Screaming Females doing Screaming Females could be nice. Throw one or two of our favorite locals on there doing their own songs, and you've got yourself a show.

Congratulations to Dark City Entertainment and everyone involved in pulling off Convention Hell for a great evening in an iconic space. See you before next year, I hope. Click through the links below for photos from all of the sets.