The Best Metal Halloween Costumes

Halloween is that one night of the year where being a freak is not only accepted it’s encouraged, especially among adults. Whether you are into masks, makeup, dressing up flashy, trying to be sexy /flamboyant, or you want to be soaked in gore and zombified, there are endless options and categories to chose from when deciding what costume works for you this Halloween.

But, for us metal heads, the choices always seem obvious: Why not dress up as an homage to your favorite metal musician or rock God? Now, there are the generic lame ass costumes you can find online and in costume shops like ’80s rocker, hair metal rocker, punk rocker and other lame attempts to look cool. Forget that cheap spandex, and poser gear and instead go as something or someone different.

Here are some suggestions for fans out there wanting to rage on Halloween as a member your favorite metal musician.

1.Slipknot
With nine masked crazy guys in the band, you have nine different faces to choose from. You can also choose to be in the old school bright orange, numbered jumpsuits from the band’s early career, or create your own style prison garb to go with your Corey Taylor mask: either the early version with dreads or the current one that looks more akin to Freddy Kruger. Either way, pick a member of the band, and a style of suit, and get ready to headbang and jump at the party you are going to. The best part about this costume is that it lives beyond Halloween. This writer has personally witnessed people dressed up as The Knot in person at every single one of their concerts and festivals since the band’s early formative years.

2.Marilyn Manson
Even more so than Slipknot, Manson has gone through as many image changes as he has band members, but this is not a negative—if anything it keeps things exciting and fresh. You can choose to go as the shock rocker during the height of the controversy in the late ’90s when he really was one of the spookiest mainstream rock/metal artists. This was the time his album, Antichrist Superstar was huge, and at the same time as Columbine shootings. Manson did look evil on stage during performances and was scantily clad in dirty looking rags and medical stitches. His abnormally pale skin, devilish tattoos long scraggly hair and weird eyes made him look demonic. Or you could mix it up and go as the more androgynous, Bowieesque Manson of years later and be colorful and gender neutral, the choice is yours, and again if you delve into Manson’s evolution as an artist you have endless options of fashion style and makeup to use.

3.Kiss
So Kiss might not be the original four band members from the ’70s, but despite the fact that they are probably Great Grandpa rock at this point, the one thing that cannot be denied is the timeless fanaticism seen at their live shows. From the heyday until now, if you go to see Kiss, there will be groups of people full on dressed as their favorite member of the band. This isn’t limited to old white guys and their wives, you’ll see millennials, college and high school students even younger kids and senior citizens all in full makeup, wigs, platform shoes, and leather. So pick your favorite member of the Detroit classic rock band and get a good makeup artist ready, you will still attract a lot of attention, even though the band is now over five decades in the making.

4.Gwar
These nonhuman shock rockers have been going at it for over a quarter of a century now, and two deaths in the band have not even stopped them. These ravenous creatures are hellbent on world domination and will use a mixture of blood, gore-filled theatric stage shows and a vicious blend of punk and speed metal. But the best part for fans is they can use Halloween as an excuse to join GWAR in their own way by dressing up as one of the space creatures who thrive on of violence and mayhem. Be sure to have a lot of brown makeup and accessories like giant swords, and stabbing devices, as well as an assortment of human skulls and phallic devices. If you go as a member of GWAR go all out. Don’t skimp on the blood!

5.Misfits
With the original line up of bassist Jerry Only, guitarist Doyle and famed vocalist Glen Danzig, so many people are interested in the Misfits again, and more younger kids are getting into the group’s music as well. you can go as either member, just include the corpse paint, black eyes, long hair in a devillock or mohawk and black pants. or perhaps you might adorn yourself with the iconic Misfits skull as a face painting. Either way, you can’t go wrong, dressing as a member of a band with a song called ‘Halloween.’

Finally, if none of these work for you, then be creative, remember, this is a holiday to let loose. Over the years people have dressed as everyone from members of Guns N Roses, Pantera, Rob Zombie, or even Alice Cooper and Ozzy. Or pick your own favorite musician, punk or metal. The main point is to have fun with it.