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Last week, we hit on a few of the highest profile Halloween shows, most notably Phish and their Little Feat musical costume, but this week we wanted to tie in some of our other faves from around the scene and highlight some of their musical excursions outside the norm. Across the live music landscape, Halloween has essentially become synonymous with cover tunes, so we thought we’d dump out our collective pillow case filled with musical treats and have ourselves a taste.

Lotus – Iron Man, Roseland Theater, Portland, OR,  10/30/2010

Quickly becoming one of the most festive young bands to go big for Halloween, Lotus kept up the Halloween spirit for two nights this year as they worked in a whole slew of video game tunes on Halloween night, but also treated fans to a Headbanger’s Ball on the 30th as they celebrated the 40th anniversary of Black Sabbath’s Paranoid album. Get a load of this monster rendition of the ultimate Sabbath song, Iron Man.

READ ON for more goodies from Halloween shows…

The Drive-By Truckers continue their prolific as fuck ways with today’s announcement that the sextet will release a new album titled Go-Go Boots on February 15th via ATO Records. You

The Mike Gordon Band spent the last few days in California, where the group kicked off a month-long tour with a pair of sold-out shows and a free performance at the historic corner of Haight and Ashbury in San Francisco.

On Saturday at The Troubadour in Los Angeles, Mike and his solo band tore through a number of songs from his recently released Moss album as well as cover debuts from the likes of Tower of Power (Down to the Nightclub), David Essex (Rock On), Little Feat (Sailin’ Shoes) and a new tune called I Miss My Mind plus an intense version of the GRAB-era chestnut Suskind Hotel.

Sunday found the ensemble moving up the coast to San Francisco for the previously mentioned free show – where the MGB performed five originals – and a sold out gig at The Independent. Cactus busted out his band’s version of Lit O Bit – a Rita Clarke & The Naturals song that Phish performed at Great Woods back in June – and debuted The Void off of Moss as part of the two set performance.

READ ON for Mike Gordon Band setlists and videos…

Conan O’Brien will launch his new TBS late-night show tonight at 11PM with some help from his old friend Jack White, who will serve as the musical guest for the

Kevin Smallwood, Jonathan Kosakow and Conor Kelly – aka Three Grown Men – will be contributing a number of articles on different topics over the coming months. One of the

Jamtronica pioneers the Disco Biscuits have announced their first tour dates of 2011 – a four-night Colorado run that features two shows at the Boulder Theatre in Boulder on January

Umphrey’s McGee @ The Pageant – October 30 & 31

Words: Ryan Maher
Images: Tammy Wetzel

The Pageant Theatre is a world-class midsize venue. Sadly, there are few venues that inspire this much fan appreciation: the multiple tiers offering great sightlines from numerous points, the tiered balcony seating, the crisp acoustics and attentive wait staff all adding up to an idyllic place for face-melting for a two-night Halloween run from Umphrey’s McGee.

[All photos by Tammy Wetzel]

Of course, West Coast fans may take umbrage with the move to St. Louis after they became accustomed to Northern Cali visits from UM for this musical holiday. 2008 was the birthplace of the mash-up Halloween show in San Francisco, and with the tremendous success of their novel approach, UM has fortunately left this tradition intact. The Wood Brothers opened to the sold out crowd for a well played, mellow set on the 30th.

Anticipation was already high following a monster two-night run by UM in Urbana the preceding nights. Queue the theme from Jaws to signal the impending onslaught of a band on fire, and the crowd roared as the six members took the stage for the first at two shows.

They led off with All In Time, one of the more anthemic UM tunes, which worked well in the opening slot as it engaged the crowd with a longtime sing-along favorite. Within just a few minutes, they dropped on a dime into The Linear, instantly submerging the mood from celebratory to a contemplative, exploratory atmosphere. And explore they did.

READ ON for more from Umphrey’s Halloween run…

VH1 Classic’s In Concert series debuts a fantastic, vintage concert on Sunday night at 7PM with the airing of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers Live at the Santa Monica Civic