Thursday 15th December 05 - Band Wars at The Polar Bear (1/4) By Martin Parnell

(1/4), (2/4), (3/4), (4/4).

The I was actualy there, and was actually listening to all the bands, whilst not being drunk, band wars review!

Martin here, soundman, musician, songwriter, artist, and independent judge throughout the competition! Well here I will be giving my overview of this competition which saw lots of great bands and lots of great gigs, which I had the privilege of doing the sound for, throughout the whole competition.

I was there every week, was sober throughout, and loved all the bands that entered. I must say a personal thank you to all the bands, who all showed such professionalism and patience. And if I don't mention your band separately in this review, sorry!

The venue is not ideal for full on, loud on stage metal bands, contributing perhaps to why we saw such phenomenal bands as, Le Shed, Planet 10, Shindigg, Above it all and Beneath the Blaze leaving the competition before the final. Additionally, the competition saw the only acoustic act, Andy Newton leave the comp before the finals too. The Polar Bear is not a metal venue, so it's hardly surprising to find no metal bands in the competition final. Something which I find a bit of a shame myself, as the Hull metal band scene is very healthy and alive at the moment. Still, this competition was judged on the performances on the night, in that venue, to that crowd and the judges.

The early stages of the competition saw some great bands pitted against some other great bands, and so inevitably, as always in any competition, some great bands got knocked out before the final. Franks right hand trouser, The Bucca effect' and most especially Kill surf city stood out for me. Please go to these bands gigs, they are awesome live bands! All were very worthy of a place in the finals, and a winning spot too. But as in all competitions there can only be one winner. On to the final ...

4 bands, Jilly hates Willy, Concience, The Cyclones, and The Landaus competed for (no second place money!) just a first place pot of £1000.

In the previous heats, which had no bearing on this final heat, all bands showed themselves to be formidable song writers and performers. I believe the Cyclones played the best set of the night, although The Landaus did bring tons of supporters in and it was very, very, busy up front while they were on stage (packed). If the reviewer, Michelle Dee had bothered to come up front and listen, actively, to any of the other bands, then the reviews on them might have been less biased.

I was there, working, not drunk, and I didn't see Michelle at all during the other band's sets and there was indeed a substantial crowd in front of the Cyclones when they played, not far off the crowd The Landaus had.

Continued ...next page (2/4)

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