St. Louis sure loves its share of covers and tribute shows. Many bands are judged in dive bars across the county on their proficiency in playing Top 40. That's not a necessarily a bad thing, but come Halloween all the tribute acts around town suddenly get a sweet taste of competition from original artists encroaching on their cover band territory. This weekend brings the alter egos of many local bands in droves, but there is still plenty of original music for those who just can't stand this time-honored holiday tradition.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30
Anthony D’Amato w/ David Wax Museum
Off Broadway
8 p.m. | $10-$12
While Mexican-folk outfit David Wax Museum is technically the headliner for this show, we'd like to draw your attention to a little known songwriter in Anthony D'Amato. In an interview conducted by RFT contributor Aaron Davidoff earlier this week, D'Amato had this to say: “There was this relationship I was in,” he says. “We’d been living together in New York City and neither one of us could afford to leave and pay for another apartment. So we ended up staying in the same space together. I started writing music and lyrics as a way of processing the weirdness of it all."
See also: Anthony D’Amato Turned His Heartbreak Into Artistic Triumph Thanks to Some Big-Name Pals
CaveofswordS Remix Album Release Show w/ Inko, Golden Curls, Hands and Feet
The Demo
8 p.m. | $8
Since its debut only a few years ago, CaveofswordS has been a favorite here at RFT. We declared it one of six major local acts to look out for in 2015, our dear readers have nominated the band for multiple RFT Music Awards and album critic Christian Schaeffer has been smitten with CaveofswordS since its first release in 2012. Headed by the husband-and-wife duo of Kevin and Sunyatta McDermott, the dub-wave outfit has grown into a powerful four-piece, complete with drummer and audio engineer Zagk Gibbons. Read more about the band's history and this latest release, a remix album of Sigils titled GLiiSS, in this week's print edition.
Langhorne Slim
The Ready Room
8 p.m. | $15-$18
Settled in Nashville, Tennessee, and newly sober, Langhorne Slim has made the best album of his career in the recently-released The Spirit Moves. From the opening title track, a Pogues-meets-Salvation-Army-band attack that conquers rhythms (and hearts that might fear kicking the juice means kicking his punk past) to the banjo-heralded, restless farewell that closes the album, Sean Scolnick (Slim's birth name) tackles breaking up both with a lover and with his ghosts. (RK)
Vanilla Beans w/ Ish, Kenshiro's
Schlafly Tap Room
9 p.m. | free
This is your no cover show on Halloween eve. Not that the bands here absolutely shy away from covers, but don't expect tribute sets like most other shows this weekend. Led by Mr. 3 of 5 himself Andrew Garces, the Vanilla Beans is a solid, in-the-pocket pop group with sweet sing-songs and clever lyrics. Ish is an oddball mess of ambient jazz that somehow works itself into a solid figure of weirdo pop with amorphous songs that absolutely ooze melody.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 31
Acid Kat Freezerburn Halloween Show w/ Brain Transplant, I Actually, Tubby Tom, After SS, The Jockstraps, Beauty Pageant, BICYCLEtricycle, Slave Cable, NNN Cook
Foam Coffee & Beer
7 p.m. | $5
Mr. Ben, the proprietor of the long-standing art/punk 'zine Freezerburn, books shows for local creepers year round, but he never misses an opportunity to celebrate the most heinous day of them all. By teaming up with Acid Kat Records, chief exporter of outsider punk cassettes in St. Louis, he brings a lineup rife with experimental noise, fierce rock and rap. Everything here is original, sans the possible KISS cover set by the Jockstraps.
Hallow-WEEN 2015: A Tribute to Ween
Off Broadway
8 p.m. | $10
When I was told that the whole joke aspect of trick-or-treating is unique to our region, it came as a shock. What the hell else is "trick or treat?" supposed to imply? Well, Off Broadway just hit paydirt when it comes to Halloween jokes, bringing the punniest pun of all time. This show garners attention just for its name alone — nevermind the actual Ween cover sets by the Feed, Cree Rider, Cooter & Hoss and Sophisticated Babies.
KEN Mode w/ Lo-Pan, Hell Night, The Gorge, Garrett Jamieson
The Demo
8 p.m. | $10
A quick pass at KEN Mode's latest record Success and you'd swear the band was a poster-child for '90s-era Touch and Go Records. Considering the new album was recorded at Electrical Audio in Chicago, Illinois by Steve Albini (Big Black, Shellac) himself, the tone feels familiar but doesn't play at paying tribute. Read more about the band and what "success" means to its members in this interview by writer Ashley Belanger.
Twiztid w/ Blaze, Boondox, Prozak, The R.O.C., Wolfpac, Kutt Calhoun, Scum, Trilogy, Freaks R Us, & Kommon Groundz
Pop's Nightclub
6 p.m. | $20-$25
Missed the Gathering of the Juggalos this year? Morbidly curious about wicked clown rap? Well, you're in luck: This Halloween, juggalo favorite Twiztid will bring Blaze Ya Dead Homie and several other Psychopathic Records-affiliated artists to St. Louis for a full night of Faygo and facepaint. Twiztid is generally thought of by fans as the “cool” version of the Insane Clown Posse, if such a thing can be said to exist, so you'll find yourself in the company of the hippest juggalos in town. Bring your mom and dad, and tons of small children. (DH)
Nothing Is Original: Halloween Covers Show w/ Veil, Strangled and more
Blank Space
9 p.m. | $5
OK, so you want to celebrate Halloween with some live music this year, but you are too good for hatchet-wielding psycho clowns. In fact, you are judging us for even telling you to go to that. Fine, cool guy. We get it. Point yourself instead in the direction of Blank Space, where the punk scene will gather for this year's covers show. Now an annual tradition, this event will feature local musicians performing the music of Portishead, Roky Erickson, Dead Moon, Rage Against the Machine and Stiff Little Fingers. Costumes are encouraged, and you should definitely expect an exceptionally wild time. (DH)
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 1
All Saint's Day: A Live 8-Bit / Chiptunes / Retro Synth Experience w/ Solid State Disaster, Awesome Force, Atman, Player 2, Dr. Vinnie Love Groove, Techwood
Cherry Lounge
8 p.m. | $2
Chiptunes tend to get dismissed by the general show-going crowd as "video-game music," and while that's not entirely inaccurate, people who pass off an entire genre of music for its most well-known application are only cheating themselves. Sure, some acts sit behind a simple sequencer and hit play, but many actually perform live with Nintendo Gameboys, jumping through hoops just to achieve that distinct retro-tone. Simply put, the artists here work with the kind of limitations that would scare most songwriters away. Think of these 8-bit songs as abstractions put under the sonic magnifying glass of a large P.A.
Note: Though we wish we could, we can't feature every great show happening in town in just one post. Peruse the St. Louis concert calendar for more ideas, and let everyone know what else you're looking forward to seeing this weekend in the comments below. To be considered for coverage in RFT Music, submit show info online or drop us a line anytime.
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