THE rumbling rock sound that has been contained within the four walls of the Charter Hall for the last three weeks will be let loose in the big open space of Simmons Park this Saturday. Organiser Richard Appleby says the grand final of the second annual Okehampton Battle of the Bands competition promises to be ?the hottest day of the year? and he is hoping as many as 1,000 people will turn up. He said: ?It has been easy to fill the Charter Hall each week, but now we are going out into the park we want a big crowd there, to create an atmosphere for the bands.? The final gets underway in the park at 6pm and Richard said there would be a big stage and full professional lighting which would ensure a special light show to accompany the music. Southpaw Jinx and Headwound booked the last places in the final following another close contest at last Thursday?s third and final heat. Confirmed as the Times went to press for the final along with the two most recent finalists were Blue Steel, Jiromist, Shockwave Generators and Imij, plus a further two bands to be chosen from the remaining runners-up during the heats. Richard said he had been worried the final heat could have been an anti-climax after two great earlier shows, but had been relieved to find there was no chance of that with bands like Southpaw Jinx, a powerful three-piece from Plymouth on hand to wow the crowd. Their retro hard rock sound and strong original material won them many new fans. Travelling all the way from Helston at short notice were Headwound. The band were faced with a line-up dilemma as their singer could not make the show due to illness. But Richard said the vocal-less band had still ?blown away? the audience with its accessible take on thrash metal. Headwound have promised to be back for the final with their singer and an even more ferocious performance. Their drummer was chosen as musician of the night. Also one member down were young Okehampton-based band Reduced who were minus a drummer. They overcame this by playing their songs as an acoustic duo and received great support from a keen crowd. A break from the usual guitar, bass, drums set-up was provided by T-Stylee, a hip-hop outfit from Hatherleigh. Chase was live on the mic with beats provided by his crew at the mixing desk, and Richard said he was cheered to hear a performer rapping about the local area and his own experiences rather than pretending to hail from the US ghettos. Setting the scene for the evening were Barton, from Okehampton, a promising band who demonstrated their versatility by swapping instruments between songs. The Ledge, from Okehampton, have recently taken on a new bass player, who locked in tightly with the drummer to create a strong rhythm section. Another bunch of local lads, Felix, showed a maturity beyond their years. Richard said their stripped down funky blues rock style was reminiscent of the soulful side of Free. Holsworthy group Mendez completed the bill. The five-piece had a driving indie rock and roll sound. ?We thought for a moment Liam Gallagher had stepped on stage because the singer was his spitting image,? said Richard. Judges were unable to separate Mendez and Felix when it came to awarding third place spot, so the two bands were named joint third.
