The top two acts from the inaugural RD Battle of the Bands put on a show at a finale concert headlined by Canadian rock band Whale and the Wolf.
The Dillmans and Mixed Blame, the first- and second-place finishers at the youth-centred band competition held in early December, were the opening bands at the show at the Red Deer Memorial Centre last month.
“The kids were at the top of their game,” RD Battle of the Bands organizer Roy Rhyno said of the two bands’ performances at the concert.
“They were very practised, very excited. There were definitely a lot of nerves backstage as well, but I think they handled it well. I think that everybody involved had a great time.”
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The Dillmans is a group created through the rock band program at Hunting Hills High School in Red Deer and Mixed Blame is punk-rock trio based in High River. The finale concert was originally scheduled to take place on New Year’s Eve, but was rescheduled to Feb. 25. Another local band, The New Rationals, also performed at the show.
Two other groups competed in the inaugural RD Battle of the Bands: Ethos, based out of Sylvan Lake, and Rotted Youth, based out of Red Deer. Only musicians under the age of 18 were able to compete in the event, which was held at The Flex in downtown Red Deer.
RD Battle of the Bands is set to return for a second straight year on Oct. 7 at the Scott Block Theatre. The plan for the upcoming edition of the event is to have junior and adult categories.
“The junior category will be 18 and under,” said Rhyno.
“The adult category is going to be for emerging bands. You definitely don’t want seasoned professionals coming in and cleaning house, so there are going to be some rules we have to iron out before we open up submissions.”
People have already expressed interest in this year’s event, Rhyno added.
“Even before we had our finale people were asking, ‘When’s the next one?’ I think I’m just going to eat, sleep and breathe this until forever, which is fine by me.”
Applications are not yet being accepted, but the the plan is to invite bands from across Alberta. Those interested in applying are asked to keep an eye on the RD Battle of the Bands Facebook page.
sean.mcintosh@reddeeradvocate.com
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