All Hallows’ Eve Dance Party at the Williams Center

By Contributing Writer, Matt Payne

Photo credits: Starcleaner Reunion

Q&A with DJ Bruce Ciccone, In-Dreamview & Starcleaner Reunion

The new Williams Center embraces ritual (see the thinking around the new Markets) and forges new traditions—especially around holidays. And so the All Hallows’ Eve dance party was born. The concept is simple—good music, a spooky atmosphere (think Phantom of the Opera…will the chandelier fall?), and creatures in costume creating a frightening, dance-prone atmosphere.

Though costumes aren’t required, the night of dancing and scary merriment ends with prizes for the best of the best.

“I really wanted to bring back the idea that it’s healthy for Halloween to be visually potent and scary, as it should be,” said event planner Michael Olivo. “Thus the ‘Most Frightening’ category. The Most Elaborate and Most Innovative costumes won’t require scariness, but that element will certainly be weighed.”

Soldato Books and Records, another Native Development project, will be sponsoring the event, with each winner getting a $100 gift certificate to the eclectic storefront.

Music will drive the night, and I reached out to local DJ Bruce Ciccone (the original DJ at Aldo’s Hideaway in Lyndhurst who went on to open the Loop Lounge in Passaic) and Jersey bands In-Dreamview and Starcleaner Reunion to talk about the night and their Halloween traditions….

How will you be celebrating Halloween on stage at the Williams Center?

DJ Bruce Ciccone: Through the music. Halloween parties have always been my favorite nights to spin. DJs love the holiday because people are more likely to hit the dance floor when in costume.

Matt Storber/In-Dreamview: We just released a new album called Spires on October 1, so we will be playing some new music from that live along with a few tracks from our album we released last year called Triptych.

Starcleaner Reunion: We’re all excited to be celebrating Halloween together as a band. It’s our first time playing a Halloween show, so we're gonna be wearing costumes to add to the fun!

What's your favorite Halloween memory from your days of Trick-or-Treating?

Bruce: Dumping the day's haul of candy on my bed when I got home.

Matt: Having a giant bag of candy to rot my teeth away.

Starcleaner Reunion—

Jo: Wandering around town and admiring house decorations was a favorite! Skeletons and gravestones on the lawn always looked appealing.

Adam: My family used to take us down this one super-wealthy street in Westfield where the houses had giant candy bars and the houses were decorated spectacularly.

Patrick: My favorite Halloween memory is going to haunted corn mazes.

What's the best costume you've ever worn?

Bruce: I tend to return to the classics. The Vampire is my favorite. Black cape with red lining. Slicked back hair and fangs.

Matt: When I was a very young kid I was a baseball…

Starcleaner Reunion (pictured)—

Jo: I put together a fun mod-inspired space cadet costume with a friend—with paper mache helmets, silvery gun, and metallic and black details.

Adam: My mom used to make me a bunch of costumes from scratch growing up. But my most memorable has to be Harry Potter.

Patrick: Werewolf (of London)

What's your scariest song, and why?

Bruce: “I Was a Teenage Werewolf “ by the Cramps. “ Bela Lugosi’s Dead “ by Bauhaus is a close second.

Matt: One of our new songs, “Belfry,” is our spookiest. It evokes images of bats in a bell tower!

Starcleaner Reunion: We have a song called “Starfloor,” which is a fun, dancey song. We do play some cool chords that are very suspenseful, with shrill guitar shredding and drone-like effects.

What can the audience expect from your set?

Bruce: Halloween tunes are great because they reflect a range of emotions from funny to scary, rock to disco. I hope to create a welcoming dance floor by weaving these types of tracks together, building the energy from one song to the next.

Matt: Instrumental music with some unorthodox guitar writing and a fun rhythm section you can dance to!

Starcleaner Reunion: We’re gonna be dancing around on stage getting lost in the jam, hoping the audience gets lost in the groove with us! The audience can expect terror, suspense, and maybe even ironic twists like The Twilight Zone.