Lean into ‘spooky aesthetic’ at HalloWomen Spook-tacular, where women rule and costumes are a must

Ghouls just wanna have fun.

And they’ll have their chance this Saturday at what’s become one of San Diego’s more sonically and visually entertaining traditions, the annual HalloWomen Spooktacular Saturday at Winstons Beach Club in Ocean Beach.

The Spooktacular, now in its third year, is an annual Halloween-themed concert that also includes a costume contest. But the event is a little different from many concerts that happen around town – all the main performers are women.

For singers Sara Jade and Jessie Lark, this will be their third Spooktacular, while Celina Rescott and her band, the Embers, will be playing the event for the first time this year.

The concept, Lark told Times of San Diego, was Jade’s brainchild.

“She’s kind of got this spooky aesthetic going on and she loves Halloween, and she was like, ‘I’ve always wanted to do this big Halloween show’,” Lark said. “This was three years ago now. And then one of the girls was like, we should call it the HalloWomen’s Spooktacular,” she added. “And we all got kind of jazzed on the idea.”

The first show, in 2024, was so successful and delivered such good vibes that all the participating bands ran it back the following year and again found success. Thus, it’s become an annual tradition.

This will be the first time, however, that the party’s being held at Winston’s, a 200-person capacity venue that had an ownership shift last month and is on the cusp of an official name change – to The Mix OB.

“We’re hoping to bring the venue to capacity and just have a really amazing fun music party,” Lark said. “That’s the vision.”

She added that as per usual, all the bands will dress up in costumes, although she declined to say what she and her fellow musicians would be wearing, so as not to ruin the surprise. Also, she said, prizes will be awarded to winners of the costume contest.

“We have a few sponsors – WildCat Guitars out of Escondido, they always give us like T-shirts and hoodies and stuff like that. TMC The Music Company in Pacific Beach, last year they gave us some gift certificates for free studio time,” she said.

This year’s concert comes at an exciting time for Lark. In early October, she released a new single, a cover of the classic “Glory Box,” originally recorded by British trip-hop band Portishead in the mid-’90s.

“My husband and guitarist Kevin and me both really love the song,” she said, adding that recording a cover was a nice change of pace because it’s not as labor-intensive as creating a new tune from scratch.

“In the studio for me, it’s always been really nerve-wracking putting out your own song ‘cause there’s so many aspects to get right. It was nice to be like, ‘OK, let’s do this cover ‘cause we already know this song is an A+ and a killer song,” she said.

“The structure or the songwriting, we don’t have to worry about any of that. We just have to record it and make it ours and bring out a new vibe. It was a really great exercise for me, it helped me like just sink into my own artistry, even though it’s not my song and my words. We were so happy with how it came out.”

A video for Lark’s version of the song is expected to debut a few days after the HalloWomen Spooktacular. But as far as the concert itself, Lark said that it’s an example of how original, live music performances are still relevant and haven’t yet been replaced by club DJs and cover bands.

“There’s been some talk and some concern about live music not being supported as much as it used to be,” Lark said. “I’ve just been telling people, ‘Hey, if you’re worried that there’s not gonna be as much opportunity and support for original live music, come to the shows.’

“If people come to the shows and they make it a big deal and they show up and they buy those tickets, that’s what’s really gonna really keep original live music safe and continuing for the next generations,” she said. “We hope that we really pack the house.”

Tickets for the HalloWomenSpooktacular cost $10 in advance and $15 at the door.