VM Radio Battle Of The Bands Preview!! (Night 3)

TOMORROW NIGHT marks the third and final semifinal in this month's VM Radio Battle of the Bands at The Canadian Nightclub, so like in prior weeks, here's our extended preview of it! As you may remember, we saw The Bear Hunters and Mannapool earn spots in next Wednesday's finals, and we'll learn the last two finalists after tomorrow's concert, via whoever wins among tomorrow's four competing bands, and the top scoring wild card band that will be revealed at the end of the night (so if you didn't win in the last two weeks, cross your fingers!) As before, tomorrow's semifinal will feature the last 4 competing bands play for 35 minute sets, during & after which they'll be scored by judges Dustin Jones (The Rising Tide), Rob Speers (The Elements), and myself on their musicianship, stage presence, crowd response, originality, and more for a total score out of 300 (100 a judge). Like in past weeks, the performance order will be randomly determined at around 8:00 PM.

An intriguing subplot also arose earlier this month when the unrelated Speak Easy Battle of the Bands was hosted on March 5th, which happened to feature four of the bands competing in the VM Radio Battle, including The Bear Hunters and three of tonight's bands. Will that event's results (which were determined by a fan vote) prove to be a bellwether of tomorrow's semifinal, or will the judges' scores differ? Here's some info on all of tomorrow's competitors, once again in alphabetical order!

The Apocalypse Afterparty: Tomorrow's only band that wasn't involved in the Speak Easy Battle, this double bassed local rap/metal band still has lots of past battle experience via "songwriters" Paul Stanghetta & Steve Mozarowski's past bands like RedD Monkey & two-time battle runners-up The Fury. Making their first concert appearance of the year tomorrow, The Apocalypse Afterparty will be debuting their new quartet lineup (featuring two new female band members), but will X, Z, x, and z make a big guitar-less statement tomorrow night?

Gnaeus: Now one of two bands in this month's field with a battle win to their name, newer local post-punk/garage rock quartet Gnaeus (pronounced "ny-us") won the fan voted Speak Easy Battle earlier this month, helping continue their local rise that has seen them play many headlining and supporting gigs in the past year, making many new fans in the process. Can Gnaeus keep their hot streak going by moving on to the finals of the VM Radio Battle?

Mike Haggith & The Din: Late additions to the battle (to replace new drummer Brandan Glew's dissolved old band The Revolution), this local acid/pop rock trio made their well received return to the stage this month with an evolved sound, but they didn't place at the Speak Easy Battle. Can The Din pick things back up with a strong showing tomorrow night, and can they channel Mike & Curtis McKenzie's 2nd place run with Haggith 2 years ago for inspiration?

Project 421: After teaming with Mike & Curtis last week with Haggith, Daniel Horton will join an opposing side for tomorrow's semifinal as bassist with classic metal quartet Project 421, who have been making many fans in the past year+ with their old school metal covers and newer original material. Though they too didn't place at the Speak Easy battle, can their wealth of past band experience give them an edge going into tomorrow's semifinal?

Like in past weeks, tomorrow's winning band will move on to the finals next Wednesday, while we'll also learn the identity of the wild card finalist with the highest second place score as well (and remember, the similar Rockstar Bar Battle two years ago had a tie for the wild card, with both bands moving on as they were on different nights, so don't count out that possibility!) Remember that next week's winning band will receive $1,000, and numerous other prizes await for bands in the top three, individual performers, and more, so visit the official Facebook event page and/or this SooToday press release for all current prize details! Also, I wanted to acknowledge that this month's battle has featured 8 competing women (The Danger Cats, x & z from The Apocalypse Afterparty, Jenny Gauvreau from Honest Job, and Lizzie Pearson from Infamous), which is great to see and very encouraging! Keep it up, ladies!

Like before, admission is $5 for tomorrow's semifinal unless you've already bought a $15 pass for the whole month, this is ALL AGES, and everything starts at 8:00 PM. For more details, visit the above links! We're one day away from learning the complete finalist field, but who will be confirmed to join The Bear Hunters & Mannapool after tomorrow's semifinal? Will The Apocalypse Afterparty's masked rap/bass sound make a huge mark? Can Gnaeus continue their quest for a second battle of the bands win? Will Mike Haggith & The Din deliver a strong showing to make the final? Can Project 421 unleash the metal and punch their ticket for next week? And which runner-up band will learn that they've earned the coveted wild card slot? We'll find out TOMORROW, and I hope to see you all there! Thanks everyone!