A battle royale of bands tonight

Gerry Krochak
Special to The Leader-Post

January 27, 2005

XTREME BAND SLAM FINALS

(The League Of One, Chesterfield Rock, 44 Slide)

Tonight Show Lounge Casino Regina

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And then there were three.

Battling it out for the opportunity to travel to Toronto and then compete against regional winners from around the country, the Canadian Music Week Xtreme Band Slam (sponsored by 104.9 The Wolf) has created a unique opportunity for three Saskatchewan acts.

The League Of One (Regina), Chesterfield Rock (Regina) and 44 Slide (Prince Albert) are the bands that have emerged from preliminary competition which has been taking place at Casino Regina during the month of January.

Although the winning act will have to find its own way to T.O., once there, the band will compete for more than $50,000 in prizes, including 30 hours of studio time, a wide range of guitars, basses, amps, microphones and other assorted gear, as well as a national radio promotion and publicity package plus three months of agency representation.

Besides the opportunity to play on the Casino Regina Show Lounge stage in front of much larger crowds than his melodic rock quartet is used to, Chesterfield Rock bassist Aaron Coons said the group is "just happy to be there."

"The exposure has been great and a lot of people have taken notice lately," he said. "There has been a lot of good bands and we've been real excited to play with them and to participate.

"As far as 'competing,' I think we'd probably prefer playing with them than against them. We'll see what happens."

44 Slide singer-guitarist and chief songwriter Kelly Kawula sees a competition such as the Xtreme Band Slam as a necessary tool for his hard-rocking foursome to take the next step.

 

"If we want to get out of Prince Albert we have to look for these sorts of (opportunities)," he said. "We have to get out to bigger cities and let people hear our stuff. For starters, we're looking to gain a bit more of a fan base in Regina.

"There's a big country music scene in P.A., but not many places for rock artists to play. And there aren't any other bands doing what we're doing."

The groups will each have 20 minutes to strut their stuff in front of a panel of four judges, who will be giving out marks in numerous categories pertaining to vocals, songs, musicianship as well as overall performance and audience interaction.

There will likely be a full house tonight and, despite butterflies, both Kawula and Coons display a quiet confidence.

"We're young musicians and we have a fresh style about us," Coons says when pressed as to why Chesterfield Rock has the edge. "We've been working hard. We wrote a new tune just for (tonight) and we're as ready as we're going to be."

The youthful exuberance of both Chesterfield Rock and The League Of One presents a formidable challenge to the more seasoned veterans of 44 Slide.

"We've been rehearsing a lot, getting things ready and just making sure we're prepared," Kawula said. "We're going to be bringing down a lot of our own fans, so the home field advantage won't be so obvious.

"We're going to do an excellent show and see what happens."

© The Leader-Post (Regina) 2005