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‘80s cover band Tainted Love to reprise haunted role for 12th annual North Lake Tahoe Halloween bash

Kaleb M. Roedel
kroedel@sierrasun.com
Tainted Love, an '80s cover band from San Francisco, will perform at the Crystal Bay Casino's 12th annual "Creeper's Ball" on Saturday.
Courtesy photo |

If you go

What: “Creeper’s Ball,” featuring Tainted Love

When: 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31

Where: Crystal Bay Casino Crown Room

Tickets: $25 (general); $45 (booth seat)

More info: crystalbaycasino.com; devildogshows.com

CRYSTAL BAY, Nev. — Back in 2003, the Crystal Bay Casino’s inaugural Halloween party was nothing more than a small concert inside the casino’s intimate Red Room.

No costumes. No prizes handed out. No headlining music act.

Twelve years later, the CBC’s annual late October bash is arguably the biggest and best Halloween party on Lake Tahoe’s North Shore.



On Saturday, Halloween, the Crystal Bay Casino will hold its 12th annual “Creeper’s Ball” inside the CBC’s spacious Crown Room. The event will include a costume contest and a performance by ’80s cover band Tainted Love.

“The fans in Tahoe are crazy, and that makes us go crazy.”Alex PelsLead singer, Tainted Love

“What’s great about it is it’s an event that people can get together and know what to expect,” CBC manager Bill Wood said. “That’s the biggest thing for us. Obviously we like the fact that people are coming to the venue, and it’s always enjoyable to see people having a good time.”



For those soon-to-be nurses, devils and wolfmen itching to belt out The Ramone’s “I Wanna Be Sedated,” Van Halen’s “Running With the Devil,” or Duran Duran’s “Hungry Like the Wolf,” be sure to purchase your tickets in advance.

Just as it has every year, tickets for Saturday’s “Creeper’s Ball” are expected to sell out, Wood said.

Wood also mentioned that Tainted Love, a seven-piece outfit from San Francisco, has played the event for at least eight years. Other notable gems in Tainted Love’s repertoire include Rick Springfield’s “Jessie’s Girl,” Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” and, of course, the crown jewel of ’80s sing-along-songs, Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing.”

“The overriding feature is we like a band that people can dance to,” Wood said, “and the ’80s music just lends itself to that type of atmosphere.”

Alex Pels, the lead singer of Tainted Love, said the band is amped to stir up that atmosphere on Halloween in Crystal Bay once again.

“We are super excited about the show, as we always are because the fans in Tahoe are crazy, and that makes us go crazy,” Pels said. “And we have some great surprises planned in terms of the Halloween theme; people are going to be blown away by what they see.

“So they should come on down if they want to hear some of the best music ever, played the best it’s ever played.”

As for the costume contest, the first-prize winner gets a treat of $300. Second place nabs $150 and third gets $50. The three finalists are picked by judges and then voted on by audience applause.

“It’s a good time for people to be out and have a good time wearing their costumes,” Wood said. “It’s a funny thing, people when they’re wearing costumes tend to act little bit differently — you lose your inhibitions or whatever. It seems people tend to get a little looser and crazier when they wear a costume, but it’s a fun part of it.”

Wood noted that those wearing masks are asked to take them off if they go into the casino area.

Visit taintedlove.com to learn more about the ‘80s cover band.


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