Three Minute Mile life of party at 'Dusk til Dawn'

About 300 students have a new Halloween memory to share after attending a live rock band concert, costume contest and comedy show following this weekend's "Dusk til Dawn" event at Willkie Auditorium.\nThe Residential Halls Association sponsored the fifth annual event on Friday.\n"It's something fun to do," said junior Joe Grimme, student president of Read Center.\nGrimme wore a costume of his favorite wrestler -- Hulk Hogan of the World Wrestling Entertainment.\n"If I walked around like this, everyone would've looked at me funny, but since it's Halloween, nobody cares," Grimme said.\nNine gravestones made of Styrofoam depicted historical significance of the holiday.\nThree Minute Mile (3MM), a rock group of former IU students, performed songs from their first album, Waiting for Whenever in front of more than 100 students, keeping them on their feet for nearly two hours.\n"It was quiet, but, the next 10 minutes, everybody showed up," Nick Vlesch, student at University of Evansville, who also said he liked their song "Groove Me."\nThe Chicago-based group returned to IU as a part of its road tour. Since its debut in the fall of 1999, the four-man band has searched for appearances and performed at venues, including the Elbo Room in Chicago, The Gig in Hollywood, Calif. and Kilroy's Sports in Bloomington. \nJason West, the band's manager, said the band has become accustomed to playing in front of both large and small crowds. \n"If they really want to do music for a living, don't quit," West said. "Be glad that five people showed up."\nAfter their gig at Willkie, the band had to prepare for a long road trip ahead. Their destination: Atlanta, Ga., for another concert Saturday night at Emory University.\nThe band is tentatively scheduled to return to Bloomington later this month, either on Wednesday or Thursday Nov. 14 to perform at Bluebird.\nBass player Justin Leone said the group is working hard to appeal to the world by learning from successful bands, such as the Counting Crows.\n"We're trying to break into a bigger market," Leone said. \nLeone, the only member who graduated from the School of Music, majored in music performance and English. Other members' majors include Spanish, psychology, economics and business.\nA costume contest drew many students' attention. About 25 contestants in Halloween costumes competed for cash and other prizes. \nSophomore John Conner, who dressed like Elton John, won a Philips DVD player as the first prize. He wore a purple boa, limestone glasses and zebra print trim.\nStudents also had some laughs from a comedy show by a student improvisation group, Full Frontal Comedy. In addition to improv, the group looked at current events, such as the sniper shootings in the Washington D.C. area.\n"'Dusk til Dawn' has become more of a social event," said Eric Hafner, vice president of the Residence Halls Association. "Halloween is time to have fun with your friends"