THIS coming Sunday sees the final of the Battle Of The Bands where four local acts will take to the stage at Hackett’s Bar, Parliament Street, in a bid to claim the top prize of recording time at Crossroads Recording Studios.
It looks to be an intense competition with four well accomplished live acts ready to impress the judges. The finalists are Oracle Villa, The Donnys, Infrared and Harveys. They will be judged using a points system that has been used in the contest for over a decade in the past. Points will be awarded for ‘musical ability’, ‘stage presence’, ‘crowd reaction’, ‘originality’, and ‘overall performance’.
For the first time, the audience will also get a vote as each person entering the event will be given a ballot that they can submit on the day.
“Its really looking like its going to be a tight contest. All of the bands that have entered have displayed some incredible talent and its really promising for the future of live music in Kilkenny. It was very difficult for judges to pick the four finalists and it will be even tougher again to pick a winner,” said organiser Andrew McGuinness.
“It has been a surreal experience, stepping back into organising these gigs for young musicians after a 15 year gap, but it has been exciting to see that the desire for live music among young people is still there. We can definitely build on this and organise some great gigs going forward,” he said.
Local sponsors for the event include Crossroads Recording Studios, Broderick’s Music Warehouse and Essaness Music, with Tommy Hackett providing the venue. AOBrienPhotography has sponsored all of the photography for the contest too so each of the bands will have professional photos just like we did back in the day with the late great Ross Costigan.
“I’m very grateful to all of the sponsors because really they are the backbone of our local music scene who have supported these events for decades. I would not have been able to put this together if it wasn’t for them. It was also great to have Jed Parle on sound as he was part of the original Battle of the Bands that I would have performed in when I was a teenager. That was where I got the inspiration to do this,” said Andrew.
“The judges too have been fantastic. Mickey ‘Boo’ Keogh performed in many local bands in the old days when these gigs were at their peak and now he is a professional drummer, a great singer and a multi-instrumentalist in many bands. I always value his opinion musically so its great to have him on board.
“Also with Ben Keating, he was at every gig back in the days, set up his band Chemical Addiction and they are still performing and doing well. He was a great help to me all those years ago and he has a great insight into music and what bands should be doing to improve themselves. We will also have a special guest judge on the day to change things up a bit and that will be announced closer to Sunday,” said Andrew.
Doors will open on Sunday at 2pm. Entry is limited as this is likely to be a sell out so it will be based on first come first served. Entry is €10 and cash only will be accepted on the door for now but plans are in place to introduce a ticketed system in the future.
