It’s October! You know what that means. Forget trick-or-treating and candy corn — it’s time for screamo bands to throw on their Halloween costumes and perform even louder, and even scarier sets. On the first weekend when it’s socially acceptable to break out the Halloween fits, a handful of East Bay venues hosted shows where fans were explicitly encouraged to dress up, with one extra incentive: cheaper tickets for those in costumes.
Last Saturday, Endmisery brought screamo fans together at Stay Gold Deli in Oakland by organizing “ScreamoWeen,” with all proceeds from the night donated to families affected by ICE. It was a stacked lineup of six bands, deli sandwiches, beer and plenty of reasons to lose your voice before the night was over.
Viola Swamp, an Oakland emo band, kicked off the long night dressed as “Adventure Time” favorites Finn and Jake. Vocalist Skylar wasted no time getting the crowd moving, switching between shrieks and screams that gave everyone a taste of what was to come. The whole band seemed committed to the bit, pairing taunting yells with crushing breakdowns. Who knew Cartoon Network could be this terrifying?
Paper Cranes, a project featuring familiar faces from the disbanded music group Parting Gift, quickly followed Viola Swamp. Only two public performances into its run as a band, Paper Cranes already had the crowd hooked. Its set featured unreleased material that had old fans filing in and new fans emerging throughout the venue, all sticking around to catch every second. Seeing as its vocalist, Evelia, is maintaining the familiar screamo style of her previous project, Paper Cranes has made clear it’s a band to watch out for.
If you were still mourning the last Sasparilla show you missed, consider this your wake-up call, because Sasparilla delivers every time. There is never a doubt whether Sasparilla will put on a memorable show, or whether it will offer ridiculous photo opportunities for the photographers in the audience. By this point, the room was heating up and the pit was getting heavier, but it was impossible to notice amid the gloriously unhinged set. Before the show, fans had jokingly posted warnings about the infamous “Sasparilla Pit.” Turns out, they were not kidding. The band soon began jumping onto equipment, putting microphones deep into their mouths and playing eerie melodies on the keyboard — Sasparilla simply does not know what a boring show is.
The next band up, Her Heart Cries, brought a little bit of everything: a Dalmatian, a vampire, Indiana Jones and, of course, more screaming. Playing its first show in Oakland, the band made sure to leave a lasting impression. Vocalist Yesenia jolted the crowd back to life after the intermission, and the band’s energy never departed. Their encouragement and genuine excitement about getting people into the pit are what make a music scene feel like a music scene.
As the penultimate set, femme-fronted screamo band Everything Falls Into Place brought a different kind of intensity to the room. Its music confronts the rage surrounding the state of our country and the immoral treatment of women, and frontwoman Lola Webb made sure that message landed. Before launching into the next song, she asked the crowd to scream as loudly as they could. The room answered by releasing a shared anger, reminding fans that music is political, especially in a scene where resistance and community co-exist and thrive.
Finally, Carmen Sixteen took the stage and easily lived up to its Instagram bio’s promise of “lively stimulation.” Frontmen Isa and David kicked things off with fan favorite “Guillotines in Vogue,” sharply yelling the lyric, “Get up and dance, bitch.” Followed by newer material such as “A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire.” While Isa danced his way through each song, the band moved between skramz, sasscore and mathcore tunes, constantly keeping the crowd guessing. Soon, a hole opened up in the pit where fans spun around holding hands. It was ridiculous, chaotic and exactly the kind of energy you’d hope for at a Halloween screamo show.
Dressing up to spend Saturday night with a bunch of strangers was a perfect way to welcome the spirit of Halloween. For folks curious about the East Bay screamo scene, consider this a formal welcome. You don’t need to know every band, every subgenre or even what to wear, you just need to show up. If you missed ScreamoWeen, don’t fret — there’s always another show to look forward to.