I always try to go see my favorite band when they come into town, and tonight’s special Halloween show at the 9:30 Club was a night to remember. It’s always much better when Anberlin headlines than when they open, as their set time is far longer and they get a chance to delve deeper into their five-studio-album repertoire. My favorite part of the show was when, about halfway through their set, Anberlin played “The Haunting,” a relatively obscure B-side off of their rarities album, Lost Songs. It’s my favorite tune of all time by the band, and that’s saying a lot since their songs account for at least half of my top 10 favorite tunes. And as lead singer Stephen Christian said, how appropriate was it to play a song so entitled for Halloween!

Another highlight of the show was the Crash Queens. If you were there, you already get the joke - the Crash Kings came out on stage dressed in drag, and remained so clothed for the remainder of the show. They finished their set with Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs” and jammed it out like crazy. They must have gone on for about ten minutes with the impromptu jam session, but I loved every second of it.

Openers Civil Twilight had me quite impressed, and it wasn’t until they played their final song, “Letters From the Sky,” that I realized I’ve heard them on the radio. They have an amazingly huge sound for a three-piece band, and they seem to be heavily influenced by bands like Radiohead and Muse (not surprising since they are from South Africa). In any case, the crowd was great to them and I’ll definitely be checking into more of their stuff.

Overall it was a fantastic show, and one of the best Anberlin performances I’ve ever seen (I seem to say that over and over, but this really was magnificent). About as good a Halloween night as I could have asked for.