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Oh, fer cute: Minnesota musicians show off their Halloween costumes

by Andrea Swensson

October 31, 2013

Today is Halloween, a day when kids across the country don disguises and headout into their neighborhoods to collect candy from strangers. (Why does that sound so creepy?) Some of us continue to dress up for Halloween into adulthood, but for many this yearly tradition brings back memories of childhood, and all of the things we either chose or were forced to wear in exchange for the promise of a pillowcase full of sugary treats.

Last year we asked local musicians to submit photos of themselves in their favorite costumes, and the results were overwhelmingly adorable. You'll find many of those submissions below, along with a fresh batch collected this year.

And as you'll see here, Halloween isn't just for the kids. For many local musicians, it's a past time that's carried on into their adult lives. In fact, you might even find some musicians in costumes playing on stages in the Twin Cities tonight, at one of the many Halloween shows happening around town—like the Current's happy hour broadcast at the Bryant-Lake Bowl, which starts at 3 p.m. and features a performance from one of the musicians featured here, Gabe Douglas.

Happy Halloween!

See also: Does your Halloween costume rock? Enter our #SpookySelfie contest

Alison Scott

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Alison says: "Apparently I liked this costume because I found pictures of me wearing it several different years. I don't remember ever owning a Care Bear. So why I was so enthusiastic to dress up as one...I'm not quite sure Must have been the peer pressure. It's pretty intense when you are 3 years old."

Drew Christopherson of Polica

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Drew says: "Our old band Mel Gibson and the Pants used to go all out for Halloween if we got the chance. I remember us all going as vampire tennis players one year. Another year we went as super pale chefs with marshmallows glues to our faces. My favorite year, though, was when we threw a Totally Gross Halloween show at The Nomad, and each dressed up for it. Ryan was a spot-on Stiles from Teen Wolf, while I was Teen Wolf himself. Eric went as Zena the Warrior Princess, Harold was some sort of Samurai, and Riley went as a mariachi. We looked pretty good up there that night. Mystery Palace had us beat, though. They were the Three Musketeers."

Gabe Douglas of the 4onthefloor

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Gabe says: "I went as Batman in '04. Hung out with Axl & Slash. It was in Madison. I got teargassed & I it was my first time being in a military state type situation. Great times."

Haley Bonar

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Haley says: “I’m the one on the far left with the too-big Jester outfit. Halloween was my favorite holiday, as was my sisters’ (the two on the right — a friend is in the pic as well dressed as Superman). We would collect as much candy as possible, of course, and then dump out our pillowcases on the living room floor and separate the candies into distinct groups — “name brand” chocolate, “name brand” candy, suckers, gum, apples with razor blades, crappy candy, yucky old lady handouts, etc. Then we would “trade,” which often meant my sister and I giving our youngest sister TWENTY! pieces of (Crappy Candy) for only ONE! Snickers bar or Kit Kat. She eventually caught onto this.”

John Mark Nelson

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John says: "Just a classic Pirate outfit."

Lizzo

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Lizzo says: “Lizzo as the ‘original hipster’ … (but I suspect it was a strawberry).”

Lucy Michelle

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Lucy says: "My mom, Jill, was the Halloween queen and helped bring my costume ideas to life. This was one of my favorites."

Lydia Hoglund of Bomba de Luz

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Lydia says: "I was Miley Cyrus before Miley Cyrus was Miley Cyrus. No further explanation needed. #noshame"

Mark Mallman

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Dave Simonett of Trampled by Turtles

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Strange Names

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Strange Names' Francis Jimenez (right) says: “1993: This was an early attempt at glam rock. I think Elton John was the goal. Surprisingly cute picture considering I had spent the better part of 20 minutes frantically trying to avoid the camera screaming, ‘Don’t shoot me, I’m only the piano player!’”

Actual Wolf, a.k.a. Eric Pollard

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Clean Water Land & Legacy Amendment
This activity is made possible in part by the Minnesota Legacy Amendment’s Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.