Let Battle commence! First bands ‘rock off’

The road to Festival Too 2018 began on Saturday, with the first heat of KL.FM’s Battle of the Bands competition kicking off at The Eagle in King’s Lynn, and once again the bar has been set very high, writes Jon Seymour.

The quality of the local acts never ceases to amaze and delight in equal measure, but it makes being a judge that much harder.

Getting things underway were Schrödinger’s Strings (or Schroedinger’s if you prefer), a trio comprising of two harpists, yes you read that right, harpists, and an acoustic guitarist. Putting it all together produced something that was both entertaining and refreshingly different. I can honestly say I’d never heard Foo Fighters played on a harp before…

Following on from that were Pretty Ace, a rock band consisting of four sisters. I’ve had my eye on this band for some time, and their progress from the first time I saw them, compared to now, is nothing short of astounding. Their own songs are very high quality, and they threw in a couple of covers for good measure. They are a band I will continue to watch, as they have massive potential.

Bloodgate Hill were the third act, and they meant business right from the off. Their energy is off the chart, and they have a catalogue of songs to back it up.

They played all their own material, which has a punk edge not dissimilar to Sham 69 and other bands of that ilk. They’re loud, brash and about as subtle as a sledgehammer, but they certainly made their mark.

Closing the show were five piece The Visitors, a mix of pop/punk with high energy songs and a young lady with a deceptively powerful voice.

Her vocal style seems delicate and fragile, but it’s delivered in such a way that belies its subtlety. It makes for a very intriguing sound, which manages to keep you mesmerised through their whole performance.

It ended in a dead heat, with only three points separating the four bands. However it was Schrödinger’s Strings and The Visitors that came out on top, but blimey it was close.