At last it can be told: I, though a very fun person in most respects, do not do Halloween. I've got nothing against those of you who do, though. I cede the clubs to you until we make it safely to November.
Tuesday, October 28
Open Mic with DJ Cam Jones @ Acadia
Greatest Jam on Earth @ Blues Saloon
International Reggae Allstars @ Bunker’s
The Altons and the Sinseers @ Cedar Cultural Center
Off With Their Heads, Smug LLC, Panel @ Cloudland
St. Dominic’s Trio @ Driftwood Char Bar
The Twin Cities Céilí Band @ Dubliner Pub
Karaoke with On Call Entertainment @ Eagles 34
- GBH with Slaughterhouse and The Mainliners @ Fine Line—Sorry but old school street punks Grievous Bodily Harm playing the unpunkest club in downtown amuses the hell out of me.
Bright Young Things, Brunch, Gauze, & The Jury Band @ Green Room
Twin Cities Jazz Orchestra @ Jazz Central
Dirty Shorts Brass Band @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Irish Trad Session @ Padraig’s
Lukas Nelson with The Band Loula @ Palace Theatre
Hunter Metts with Emma Andersen @ 7th St Entry
Artist Showcase @ Sociable Cider Werks
October Conspiracy Series featuring ditch pigeon, dog gamn, red lovely @ 331 Club
Worker’s Playtime with Dead North @ 331 Club
Mark Winters @ Underground Music
Ali Gray’s Country Jamboree @ White Squirrel
Sammy Jean Cohen (Tuesday Residency) @ White Squirrel
Mold, Machine Country, i h8 it here, Obedient @ Zhora Darling
Wednesday, October 29
Rickie, Golden Satellite, Oceanographer, Big Big Brain!, Simple Motions, Dirtbike Boyfriend @ Acadia
MN Songwriter Showcase @ Aster Cafe
Álvaro Torres/Nathan Hanson Quartet @ Berlin
The Cherry Pit Open Jam @ Berlin
Chickaboom and Troglydyte @ Carbone’s
Fr. Vito and Friends @ Crooners
The Charade; A Tribute to D’Angelo @ Crooners
Adi Yeshaya Jazz Orchestra feat. Jennifer Grimm @ Dakota
Cellar Dwellers, Perro Solar @ Driftwood Char Bar
Miss Shannon’s Swing Night @ Eagles 34
Dylan Hicks & Small Screens @ Icehouse
Touch Of Malice, A Martyrs Dilemma, Defiled Sacrament @ Klash Coffee
Pat Donohue & Friends @ Midway Saloon
Cowboy John & Gigi @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Templs with Dashed, Two Ghosts @ Pilllar Forum
Chezile with Alex Banin @ 7th St Entry
BZ3 Organ Trio @ Schooner Tavern
A Skylit Drive, Softspoken @ Skyway Theatre
Harold’s House Party on KFAI with Mumblin’ Drew’s Oldfangled Orchestrators @ 331 Club
Spooky Tunes @ Underground Music
Like Moths to Flames @ Varsity Theater
Apple Blossom with Sonic Sea Turtles, Stranger @ White Squirrel
Terrapin Stallion: Primal Grateful Dead and Ween Covers with Dream of the Wild @ Zhora Darling
Thursday, October 30
Ryan Lee Jones & Brotherwonder @ Aster Cafe
Charlie Bruber (Album Release) @ Berlin
Jay Bee & the Routine @ Bunker’s
Hot Club Mania Quartet @ Crooners
Urban Classic Presents Pure Funk @ Crooners
Candy-Oh: The Cars Tribute @ Dakota
3 Guys Who Used to Work Together, The Poudre Canyon Band @ Driftwood Char Bar
LGBTQ+ Twin Cities Latin Dance @ Eagles 34
Karaoke with On Call Entertainment @ Eagles 34
Artificial Flowers, the Weeping Covenant, the Del-Viles @ Eagles 34
Mississippi Hot Club @ 56 Brewing
Daniel Donato’s Cosmic County @ First Avenue
Icehouse's Night Before Halloween @ Icehouse
Acoustic Thursdays @ Mainstreet Bar & Grill
Kaitlyn Cassady @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Saint-Saëns Piano Concerto No. 2 @ Orchestra Hall
Dylan Gossett with Buffalo Traffic Jam @ Palace Theatre
Samuel Wilbur (Album Release) with Meghan Kreidler and the Cameras @ Parkway Theater
Momzilla, Agony in the Living Room, Baumgardner, Lydia @ Pilllar Forum
Scott Allen & the List, Self Neglecters @ Schooner Tavern
- Count Spookula with King Sized Coffin, BIG DELICIOUS, and Unattractive Giant Monster @ 7th St Entry—There I was, biking to Duck Duck Coffee on a glorious Sunday autumn afternoon, and what should I behold but a sidewalk crammed with becostumed kids, their amused parents, and other gawkers, many of their foreheads anointed with bloooood from an unholy chalice. In the bed of a pickup, Count Spookula, a wiry black-clad man with a jack-o’-lantern face, regaled us with pre-recorded tunes about bats, monsters, and falling in love with spiders. It was the least spooky context imaginable, yet it was perfect. Tonight’s “ritual,” as the Count refers to his shows, won’t have toddlers dressed as Spider-Man or Matilda bouncing around, but you’ll have a good time regardless. Boo! Or mwahahahaha, as the case may be.
Stephanie Was, High Tiny Hairs @ 331 Club
Oracle M, Gauze, Velvet Ghoul, Snakeworld @ Time Travelers Social Club
Earth with Infinite River @ Turf Club
Frets & Barrettes Presents: A Night of Mischief @ Uptown VFW
The Driftless Revelers @ White Squirrel
Automelodi, Finesse, the Dead Electrics, DJ Shane Kramer @ Zhora Darling
Friday, October 31
Michigander and Oliver Dance @ Amsterdam
Rachel Wyre with Daniel Johannes @ Aster Cafe
Alec Watson/Pat Keen/Dave Power @ Berlin
DJ D-Mil, Good for Gary @ Boardwalk
Dan Ristrom & the Big Throwdown @ Bunker’s
Chris Webby's Annual Halloween Show ft. Jarren Benton @ Cabooze
Toilet Rats, King Sized Coffin, Whispered the Rabbit, Mark Har’s 16mm Trailer Explosion @ Cloudland
Colleen Raye and Rick Carlson @ Crooners
Macabaret: Haunting Songs for the Season @ Crooners
A Celebration of the Life & Music of Luther Vandross @ Dakota
China Rider @ Day Block Brewing
The Dissenters, Wright Wyatt, 747s, Longview @ Driftwood Char Bar
Irish Music Session @ Dubliner Pub
Ghostchella: Oak and the Woods, Jillian Rae, Poison Ivy and the People @ Eagles 34
Life Skills, Dead Poets, Dead Fashion @ Eagles 34
Quarter Life Crisis with Retro/Modern @ Fine Line
First Avenue’s Annual Halloween Party and Costume Contest @ First Avenue
Dj Siah x Dj Fatz x Dj Sha @ Gidi
The Smallweeds @ Ginkgo Coffee
New Orleans Suspects, Kung Fu Hippies, Twince @ Hook and Ladder
Flash Mob @ Mainstreet Bar & Grill
Punk Bowling with Cover Bands @ Memory Lanes
Tre Spiritus (Album Release) @ Metronome Brewery
- Zapp Band @ Minnesota Music Cafe—Roger Troutman died a quarter century ago, but siblings Lester and Terry are still around and keeping the Zapp name and legacy alive, and this is a fun venue for them to hit. You could make worse Halloween plans than grooving to "More Bounce to the Ounce," "Playin' Kinda Ruff," and other computerized '80s funk jams.
Saint-Saëns Piano Concerto No. 2 @ Orchestra Hall
Haydn’s Symphony No. 93 with Richard Egarr @ Ordway
Art Beagle’s Backup Band @ Padraig’s
Dark Omens: A Goth Nightclub @ Red Carpet Nightclub
Hot Pastrami @ Schooner Tavern
The Shackletons and Menno Versteeg with Sallyforth @ 7th St Entry
Horror On Hennepin 2025 with Space Laces, Habstrakt, Crumb Pit @ Skyway Theatre
Cole Diamond, Miss Georgia Peach, Cowboy Thoughts @ Terminal Bar
WERKHAUS 2: Electric Boogaloo @ TRXX WRHS
Skalloween with Space Monkey Mafia @ Turf Club
GooseBump ‘N’ Grind: 90s Halloween Party @ Uptown VFW
Randall King @ Varsity Theater
Eli Gardiner with Sawtooth Witch @ White Squirrel
FXRMNK with Chickyrooster @ 331 Club
Lasalle, FenixDion, & The Dregs @ Zhora Darling
Saturday, November 1
The Calaveras Dance IV: A Day of the Dead Celebration @ Amsterdam
The Day After Dark: A Night of Indie Sound @ The Arthouse
Brent Fuqua (EP Release) @ Aster Cafe
Ghost Kitchen, the Foshays, That’s What You Get @ Barely Brothers
Nightmare at the Bazemnt @ Bazemnt
Joel Shapira (Album Release) @ Berlin
Lucia Sarmiento Quintet @ Berlin
Mikel Wright & the Wrongs @ Bunker’s
Clash Minirockers, Cut Rate Clones, My Kid Banana @ Can Can Wonderland
J. Bell and the Lazy Susan Band @ Carbone’s
David Huckfelt and the Unarmed Forces with Nona Invie @ Cedar Cultural Center
Petty Larcenists, Loss Leader, Sparrowhawk @ Cloudland
Katie Gearty and Rick Carlson @ Crooners
Tribute to Olivia Newton-John and Anne Murray @ Crooners
The Shabby Road Orchestra @ Dakota
Shave the Neighbor, the Famous Names @ Driftwood Char Bar
Twin Cities Country Dancers @ Eagles 34
Karaoke with Reina Starr @ Eagles 34
Greentop with Beemer & Lenwood @ 56 Brewing
Party Girl—A Night of Party Girl Anthems @ Fine Line
Everclear with Local H and Sponge @ First Avenue
Candlelight: The Best of Hans Zimmer @ Granada
Agnes Uncaged, Scorched Waves, Lighter CO. Callback @ Green Room
Sleaze Freaks: An Indie Sleaze Dance Party @ Green Room
13th Annual Festival de las Calaveras: Twin Cities Dia de los Muertos Celebration @ Hook and Ladder
- Lazerbeak (EP Release), Ginger Bones @ Icehouse—If there's one thing Lazerbeak's gonna do, it's release EPs. Seeing Friends, the third such mini-album from the Doomtree producer in 2025, it's a relatively laidback joint, with lotsa synth melodies and insinuating rhythms. Tonight he'll be performing with percussionist Zack Baltich. There will be beats.
Jorge Banuelos: The JB Factor @ Jazz Central
Treehorn @ Mainstreet Bar & Grill
Gravel on Mud @ Metronome Brewery
The Crunch Bunch @ Midway Saloon
Cellar Dwellers @ Minnesota Music Cafe
DJ Bryan Angeles @ Modist Brewing
Halloween Horror Night Party @ Myth Live
Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra @ Orchestra Hall
Haydn’s Symphony No. 93 with Richard Egarr @ Ordway
Gales of November @ The O'Shaughnessy
- Jesse McCartney with Ana Sky @ Palace Theatre—Really? OK.
Alicia Villarreal @ Pantages Theatre
Out in Front, Mother Wind, Mystery Meat, Virginia's Basement @ Pilllar Forum
SlovCzech, UVB @ Schooner Tavern
NoSo with JayWood @ 7th St Entry
Valors, EVV, Danser @ 331 Club
Hmong New Year Concert @ Treasure Island
Dog Park with Hotel Fiction @ Turf Club
Spud & His Buds, Spider Lily, Weald, & Freak When Sees @ Underground Music
Reventón: Halloween Reggaeton Party @ Varsity Theater
Yeah Yeah Fine with Katy Tessman @ White Squirrel
David Stoddard, Charlie Roth @ White Squirrel
STATESIDE, Super Sometimes, Fly Over States @ Zhora Darling
Sunday, November 2
Infinity Song with Devon Gilfillian @ Amsterdam
A Day to Remember, Yellowcard, the Wonder Years, Dinosaur Pile-Up @ Armory
Patty and the Buttons @ Aster Cafe
- Paul Metsa (CD Release) @ Aster House—To celebrate his 70th birthday, the MN songwriting great is releasing Songs of Resistance and Respect, a collection of 12 tracks that he's written since 1984, including the newest, "No Kings, No Crown," which he's calling a "lullaby to liberty." Tonight's gig is also a benefit for progressive radio station AM 950 and a good excuse to check out Aster House, if you haven't been yet.
Jan Jelinek with alone-a @ Berlin
Danny Frank & the Smoky Gold, Barefoot Bluegrass @ Cabooze
Monthly Bluegrass Jam @ Caydence Records & Coffee
The Ryan Picone Quartet @ Crooners
Steve Clarke’s Cabaret of Jazz @ Crooners
Phine and Friends, Shotgun Ragtime Band @ Driftwood Char Bar
Crown of Clover @ Dubliner Pub
Sunday Trad Session @ Dubliner Pub
Nomolos, with Asparagus, Lily Blue, Z A B @ Green Room
Femmelectric @ Minnesota Music Cafe
The Drift: A Night of Vinyl @ Mortimer’s
Karl Ove Knausgård & Glenn Kotche: Historia @ Northrop
Minnesota Youth Symphonies Fall Concert @ Orchestra Hall
Haydn’s Symphony No. 93 with Richard Egarr @ Ordway
Minnesota Philharmonic Orchestra @ O’Shaughnessy
Tha Fab Four @ Pantages Theatre
Church of Cornbread @ Schooner Tavern
The Two Lips with Niko Rubio @ 7th St Entry
Pet Needs with Skuff Micksun @ Studio B
Billy Raffoul with Theo Kandel @ Turf Club
they are gutting a body of water, Fib, Guitar @ Underground Music
Emily Haavik with Dave Mehling @ White Squirrel
Monday, November 3
Karaoke Night @ Driftwood Char Bar
The Great Irish Sing-Along @ Dubliner Pub
Tango Desperados Practilonga @ Eagles 34
Durand Jones & The Indications with The Psycodelics @ First Avenue
MN Hard Bop Collective @ Metronome Brewery
Blues Jam with Moses Oakland @ Midway Saloon
- David Byrne @ Orpheum Theatre—When David Byrne came to the Orpheum in 2018, I sat out his shows for what seemed like a justifiable reason at the time: I wasn’t crazy about his latest album, American Utopia, and I honestly wasn’t keen on any of the solo albums he’d released since deciding his genius was too vast to be constrained by Talking Heads. Well, I’m not too hot about Byrne’s latest, Who Is the Sky?, but I’m not gonna make the same mistake again. Lots of hard-to-impress friends called it the best show they’d ever seen, and on the evidence of the concert film he released in 2020 (no Stop Making Sense but come on, what is?) I was a dummy. And honestly, Who Is the Sky?, recorded with the Ghost Town Orchestra, is intriguing if for no other reason than you can hear several of the songs ("She Explains Things to Me," "What Is the Reason for It?”—“it” being love) as Byrne publicly addressing the autistic tendencies he (like many of us) has long suspected he possesses. But who cares about the new record? He’s a master showman, and he’ll deliver.
HOLYWATR, Slow Degrade @ 7th St Entry
Open Mic Mpls @ Sociable Cider Werks
Open Decks Silent Disco @ Time Travelers Social Club
The Surfrajettes with Bethlehem Shalom + Black Widows DJ Set @ Uptown VFW
