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First Posted: 10/13/2014 There&#8217;s something about metal music and Halloween &#8211; they&#8217;re two great tastes that go great together, much like the intermingling of a variety of sweets in a trick-or-treater&#8217;s sack.
NEPA music fans are invited to spend All Hallow&#8217;s Eve at Diane&#8217;s Deli in Pittston for a night of music, mayhem, and a costume contest. Heavy Halloween, hosted by local metal vets Beyond Fallen is shaping up to be a sinister good time.
&#8220;It&#8217;s going to be a great night,&#8221; said Beyond Fallen vocalist Joe Karavis. &#8220;We&#8217;ve done Halloween shows before and it&#8217;s always fun, with a good turnout.&#8221;
Karavis said he enjoys catching what other metal bands on the local scene are doing. This Halloween show will feature local acts Meatplow, Threatpoint, and Cause of Affliction &#8211; all bands with an infectious stage presence that know how to throw a party. Karavis said no matter how many times his band shares the bill with all of these other local metal luminaries, he always finds that they &#8220;offer something new and exciting.&#8221;
&#8220;I mostly look forward to sharing the stage with a bunch of other talented musicians,&#8221; said Beyond Fallen drummer John Jesuele. &#8220;Some from the immediate area, and others who travel hours to get exposure to a new crowd.&#8221;
Karavis is thrilled with the lineups for these types of shows that his band&#8217;s guitarist, Steve Jasuilewicz, has helped to solidify over the years.
&#8220;Steve&#8217;s really done a great job putting together good lineups of bands, and shows that are memorable for the fans,&#8221; Karavis said. &#8220;This show will be one to remember. There&#8217;s a lot of excitement about it.&#8221;
So what is it about Halloween and metal that go hand in hand?
&#8220;The visual thing is obviously a big part of it,&#8221; Karavis said. &#8220;Metal often flirts with the darker side of life, even from the fantasy perspective. Who doesn&#8217;t like a Halloween party? It&#8217;s a chance to pretend and get lost in the fantasy.&#8221;
Jesuele enjoys the horror movie/haunted house theme of the holiday. He likens celebrating Halloween to coming to terms with the reality of death &#8211; something that metal itself has endlessly explored since its inception.
&#8220;Metal also has that dark atmosphere, the same dissonant type chord voicings as horror movie scores,&#8221; he said. &#8220;There are the lyrical themes that talk about the reality of life around us and how it&#8217;s not all love songs and driving down the street to a party. Plus, the imagery is just over the top &#8211; just like Alice Cooper, GWAR, and Iron Maiden&#8217;s stages.&#8221;
&#8220;Jason &#8220;The Mayor Ov Metal&#8221; Burnett is always enthusiastic and a big part of local metal scene,&#8221; laughs Karavis. &#8220;Who knows what he&#8217;ll do - hopefully something crazy! The local metal scene has a few real characters, so it&#8217;s always fun.&#8221; This year, the costume contest will feature a cash prize, so Beyond Fallen fully expects attendees to pull out all the stops.
&#8220;I really want to see people actually try and do Halloween right,&#8221; Jesuele says. &#8220;I want latex prosthetics, gore&#8230; something that would make Tom Savini or Greg Nicotero grossed out. As far as the Mayor Ov Metal goes&#8230; he goes all out for every show.&#8221;
This Halloween show is capping a progressively forward-moving year in Beyond Fallen&#8217;s more than 10 years of existence. Notably, the band welcomed Greg Baczmarga as its lead guitarist &#8211; he&#8217;s &#8220;one of the area&#8217;s top shredders&#8221; according to Karavis.
As for Baczmarga, he&#8217;s just happy to be the &#8220;new guy.&#8221;
&#8220;I&#8217;m happy to finally be playing and writing new material especially since this is my first band,&#8221; he admits. &#8220;While I&#8217;m not as experienced as everyone else, I look forward to progressing as well as going back to the studio for the new album. I couldn&#8217;t imagine myself playing in another band.&#8221;
What does Karavis think will make this show a success?
&#8220;From the sound, to how the show is organized, to the bands on the bill, we pay attention to what&#8217;s most important, and that&#8217;s the fans,&#8221; he said.

Halloween, Beyond Fallen style