Hi folks!
To a wander up to Staffs Uni last night to take part in the judging panel for the annual Battle of the Bands competition. Thought I'd let you know what went down.
Eight bands in total took the the stage to ty and impress the panel, consisting of myself and Oz from Midlands Metalheads Radio.
*Blunderbuster- As last years winners, I was interested in what this band would be like, never having seen them before. They are a strange mix of metal/ rock/ country, even boasting a violin amongst their line-up. I personally didn't get it, maybe it was just the below par sound, but it was hard to see a clear dynamic within the group.
*Steeltrooper- Polished performance from the 'troopers', they've definately perfected their niche, expect more from these guys.
*The Arkhamists- As far as personal taste goes, for me the best performers of the night. Grunge/ Rock straight from the 90's but with a slight twist. Brilliant cover of End Credits by Chasing Status to finish their set- who'd of thought a grunge band would be playing that?
*Whiskey Whores- Clear influences came across before this 5 piece had even played a note, Guns n Roses, Motley Crue, the list goes on, talented guys, just not particularly original.
*Diamond Lil- Best vocalist of the night, solid, well rounded rock, near the top of the list for me.
*Oroku Saki- An entertaining performance from the ninja turtle influenced 1st years. Proclaiming that they'd only been together for a week, so be kind. This was evident at times when I'm not sure all the band member new were abouts in the song they were, this may however of been due to alcohol...
*DB10- Injecting a bit of a Blink 182/ Sum 41 vibe into the evening, with an interesting cover choice of Pokerface by Lady Gaga...
*Platypus Duck- Pop/ Punk veterans of the Stafford music scene, they describe themseleves pretty well "Combining melodic harmonies and testicle wrenching riffs, Platypus Duck are fighting the good fight for Pop Punk"...
So, after the the scores were totted up, the winners were...
Steeltrooper!