Suwannee Hulaween 2025: Music, Magic, & Moonlight In The Swamp [Photos/Videos]

Every year around Halloween, The Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park transforms into a living, breathing oasis of art, creativity, and connection. Artists from around the world come to showcase their unique crafts to a costumed hoard of strange and unusual patrons. But it’s not just about music. It’s also about sunrise swims in the Suwannee River, watching hundreds of bats swarm out of the Bat House at sunset, and exploring an immersive world of interactive art like nothing you’ve ever seen before.

Everyone comes ready to get down—open-minded, fully costumed, and radiating funky Halloween energy. There’s plenty of space to dance, spin, flow, and be free. It’s the kind of community that makes you believe in magic again. With lush nature, dreamlike art installations, and a stellar lineup, Hulaween has earned its spot as one of the most unique and impressive festivals in the world. Here are some highlights of Hulaween 2025:

Australians In The Swamp: Glass Beams & Parcels

The Australian group Glass Beams delivered what was, for this writer, the most transcendent set of the entire festival. Picture Alien vs. Predator in the Sahara Desert, with a dash of witchcraft and psychedelia.

The trio appeared in shimmering full-body suits and mirrored masks, faceless and otherworldly. They blended Hindustani ragas and Middle Eastern rhythms with layered, hypnotic jams and eerie synthesizer sounds.

Indian-Australian multi-instrumentalist Rajan Silva struck a pose like a villain cracking open the earth as musical lightning shot from his instrument. Smoke and lights erupted behind him as haunting harmonies floated through the freezing air. Glass Beams’ sound was mystical and spellbinding, a fusion of ancient and futuristic, Eastern and Western, human and supernatural. It was spooky and cinematic, exactly the kind of energy I wish Hulaween leaned into more for Halloween.

Glass Beams — Suwannee Hulaween — The Hallows — 11/1/25 — Full Set

[Video: Hatter Vision]

Then came Parcels, a magnetic, euphoric standout performance from down under. Their sound fused disco, psych, electropop, and ’70s groove. The set was pure sunshine, wholesome and full of joy. Think Beach Boys at the discotheque. Their harmonies were flawless, shifting from soft and pure to disco-funk explosions that had the crowd raving.

Mid-set, the band sat down on the stage to talk with the audience, an intimate, genuine moment that connected them to the crowd. The band itself was glowing. Drummer Anatole Serret said that part of him never wants to play in Florida again because he knows it will never be like this, unless they return to Hulaween. People walked away from that set saying they felt changed. Everything about that performance, from the sound to the stage presence to the cinematography and visuals, felt perfectly curated to leave a lasting impression.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Hsufeng Cheng (@hsufengchengis)

Masters Of The Jam: Cheese, Goose, & Daniel Donato

Goose delivered a powerhouse two-set performance full of funk, dark melodies, and Halloween spirit. Drummer Cotter Ellis’ voice brought colorful, theatrical character to songs like “My Mind Has Been Consumed by Media” and Goose’s debut of ’80s hit  “Somebody’s Watching Me”. His range and expressiveness added dynamic flair to the band’s intricate grooves, a reminder of what a brilliant addition he is to the lineup and how much color and personality he brings to its sound.

In contrast to these animated, high-energy numbers, Goose descended into the shadows for the chilling, slow-burning werewolf ballad, “Silver Rising”, which pulsed like a heartbeat before erupting into an electrifying release. The band’s cover of Tears for Fears’ “Mad World” shimmered with eerie beauty, leaving the crowd swaying gently in a collective trance. Goose closed with a soaring “Don’t Leave Me This Way” before returning for an encore of “SALT” that ran past its scheduled time. No one in the crowd was ready to let go.

Goose — “Arrow” > “My Mind Has Been Consumed By Media” — 11/2/25

Goose — “Somebody’s Watching Me” (Rockwell) — 11/2/25

[Video: Blake Jefferson]

Goose — Suwannee Hulaween — The Meadow — 11/2/25 — Partial Set

[Video: Blake Jefferson]

Festival host The String Cheese Incident held nothing back all weekend, playing five sets across three days. Its biggest set (three hours long) helped open the festival on Thursday afternoon, likely to make up for Cheese not doing its traditional Sunday show this year. The music was fantastically funky, full force, and energetic. It felt like we had just stumbled out of our cars after the long trek to the festival, and Cheese was already in prime form like it was the witching hour. It was an outstanding performance that left me wishing I’d had a little more time to settle in beforehand.

Friday’s second set wove intense violin and mandolin lines through intricate, funky, psychedelic grooves, mesmerizing and electric. Saturday’s “Club Transylvania” set was pure Halloween theater: vampire glam, glimmering aerialists spinning above the stage, guest singers including Kanika Moore, and wide-ranging crossover horror anthems like “Zombie Boy” (Lady Gaga), “Dragula” (Rob Zombie), “Dracula’s Wedding” (OutKast), “Le Freak” (Chic), “People Are Strange” (The Doors), “Hungry Like The Wolf” (Duran Duran), and loads more. It was funky, spooky, and over-the-top in the best way. Nobody ever broke character. It felt like a glamorous, extravagant vampire nightclub with lavish costumes, talented dancers, and lively disco music.

The String Cheese Incident — “Club Transylvania” Shebang Set — The Meadow — 11/1/25 — Full Video

[Video: Blake Jefferson]

The String Cheese Incident — “Celebration” (Kool & The Gang) — 11/1/25

Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country closed Hulaween 2025 at full throttle, an 11-out-of-10 psychedelic honky-tonk experience at Spirit Lake. He radiated pure joy, channeling something deep and cosmic, going long on 15+ minute versions of originals “Lose Your Mind”, “Down Bedford”, “Double Exposure”, and the closing “Dance in the Desert”. He had a fantastic dynamic with the crowd and connection to his performance, putting his whole body into it as if the music were moving through him. It was fiery, funky, and twangy, an outstanding closer and one of the most purely psychedelic performances of the weekend.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Daniel Donato (@thedanieldonato)

Related: The Disco Biscuits Play First Show With New Drummer Marlon Lewis At Suwannee Hulaween 2025 [Videos]

Bonus Highlights

Arc De Soleil brought psychedelic funk-rock grooves with a mystic, desert-sunset vibe, led by Sri Lankan-born Swedish multi-instrumentalist Daniel Kadawatha. It was inspirational and alive with energy: groovy, spacey, and sun-drenched.

[Video: Brian Barnard Art]

Dogs In A Pile closed out a late-night slot with jazzy funk improvisation and Halloween flair, including a cover of Ween’s “Voodoo Lady”. Unfortunately, the time change caused chaos. They were listed on the schedule for 2:15 a.m., but the fact that the clocks would move back an hour for the end of Daylight Saving Time was not noted, so it was technically 1:15 when they went on, which meant some fans arrived late. Still, those who made it were treated to a tight, energetic set from one of the most exciting young jam acts on the scene.

Dogs In A Pile — Suwannee Hulaween — Spirit Lake — 11/1/25 — Full Audio

The World of Hulaween: Art, Mystery, & Connection

Hulaween’s art oasis, Spirit Lake, came alive each night with projections, light sculptures, and interactive installations. The Oracle, a giant talking eyeball projected on the lake, answered people’s questions with eerie and insightful prophecies. A maze of murals, a haunted chapel called The House of Lost, and cozy chill spaces like decorative bird houses gave everyone a place to rest and reconnect.

Inside The House of Lost, you might stumble into a metal band, a swamp monster DJ spinning a filthy twerk set, or dancers suspended in cages above the crowd. Behind the stage, inside a warm room full of couches and mirrors, there was a hidden fireplace where you could crawl in and climb onto a giant spiderweb.

Everywhere you went, there was something to discover, a moment of calm, a burst of chaos, or something creepy waiting around the corner.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Caleb Arias (@bonnarooyearbook)

House Of Lost — Spirit Lake — Suwannee Hulaween 2025

[Video: Sister Wanda Ita Schrüm]

[Video: Robert Dunn]

Closing Thoughts

Hulaween 2025 was a magical maze full of music, Spanish moss, and moonlight. From Glass Beams’ haunting mysticism to Cheese’s powerful theatrics, the festival balanced the weird and the wonderful in perfect harmony.

It wasn’t just a weekend in the woods; it was a living dream, a celebration of sound, and the kind of experience that can only happen once a year, deep in the swamp.

Below, check out a collection of photo galleries from Hulaween 2025, with pictures from Aaron Bradley, Tara Gracer, Yvonne Gougelet, Patrick Hughes, Josh Martin, Jay Strausser, Josh Skolnik, and Brittany Teuber.