Battle of the Bands: Semi-Final One

On Monday, 4 bands battled it out for 2 coveted places in the final at Timepiece.

The competition, run by Exeter’s Campus Bands society, started at the end of January. In 4 weekly heats, 13 bands were whittled down to 8 semi-finalists.

The line-up for the first semi-final was Ennor, Saudade, Academic Audio and Bloom. As with the heats, one band would go through on the judge’s vote and another on the public vote.

The night was a great success. The competition was fierce and all 4 bands bought a very different sound: Ennor paired smooth, feel good melodies with great lyrics written by Tom Elliot; Saudade bought energy and attitude, inducing members of the crowd to a mosh pit; Academic Audio meshed funk with the soulful vocals of Gemma Salter; and Bloom delivered jangly guitar lines with catchy vocals.

Saudade rocking out

The bands performed a mix of originals and covers. Bloom did a great indie version of Outkast’s Hey a and Academic Audio got the audience grooving to one of their originals, dedicated to the hot girl who works in Costa Coffee on campus.

Despite the combined talent only 2 could go through …

Academic Audio went through on public vote and Saudade on the judges’ vote. In terms of musical tightness (and number of guitargasms) this was definitely the right result.

Academic Audio

Julian Morrall, guitarist for Academic Audio, said, “We were incredibly pleased with the result last night. Everybody was incredible so we feel very lucky to be in the final.”

“Academic Audio has only been together for about 5 weeks and we’re really enjoying ourselves. We take our inspiration from all types of genres and really try to create what we feel is a unique and different sound to the other bands in the competition.”

Simon Allington, president of Campus Bands said, “This year’s Battle of the Bands has so far been truly one of the best we have seen in terms of quality music and audience attendance. With the semi-finals in full swing, the competition is certainly heating up, so be prepared to see battle commence!”

The next semi-final will take place on Monday 10th.