NORTH Tawton-based duo Shockwave Generators were celebrating last Saturday, after being named the winners of the second annual Battle of the Bands competition in Okehampton. Organiser Richard Appleby said he had been hoping to create his own scaled-down version of Glastonbury in Simmons Park ? but was probably hoping to avoid the associated customary downpour. Despite showers through the early part of the show, a large crowd of music fans gathered to watch local musicians relish their moment on a big stage. Richard said the event had gone ?incredibly well? and there had been a ?wonderful atmosphere? all evening. He said: ?Last year was the first year we ran the event, and we proved there was a demand for something like this in Okehampton. ?This year, we have built on it considerably and now we have already started seeing what we can learn from this time to make it even bigger next year.? Richard also paid tribute to the audience who turned up through the heats and for Saturday?s final. ?They have been completely supportive. We started early, at 6pm, and I was thrilled to see so many people there from the start. ?It was good to see whole families there too. The crowd were resilient and wanted to enjoy themselves, encouraged by the quality of the bands.? Shockwave Generators beat the six other finalists to win the first prize of champagne and a day in a professional recording studio. The runners-up honours were taken by Southpaw Jinx (second) and The Devil Riders (third). Sezrah, vocalist and guitarist with Shockwave Generators said the atmosphere in Simmons Park had been ?incredible?. She described the open-air crowd as ?the best audience we have ever played to?. Sezrah said when they were announced as winners, she and bandmate Andy Shaw had looked at each other in ?complete shock? at the result. ?We didn?t really go there with any expectations. We just wanted to play because we knew the audience would be really good,? she said. The award for top individual musician of the night went to 12-year-old guitarist PJ from Tavistock band Imij, while Sezrah was Richard Appleby?s choice as fashion icon of the night. PJ?s mother Nicola Barrett said: ?It has been so fantastic. They have been so focused since going to the Battle of the Bands last year. They were inspired to get a band together. It was a great experience for them, as they have only played in public three times.? Shockwave Generators had the good fortune to be the last band to play, which meant a sizable crowd were extremely fired up by the time they stepped onto the stage. The band originally appeared in last year?s Battle of the Bands but their raw, grubby sound has now developed into a more straight-ahead rock approach. There has always been a strong visual element to Andy and Sezrah?s performance and this was highlighted at night with an impressive light show as a backdrop. The Plymouth-based trio Southpaw Jinx were popular on the night, blasting out strong simple riffs that got people jumping around. The Devil Riders were another crowd favourite. Their raging cover of Tears for Fears? Mad World was both funny and sad, but hard for the audience to ignore. The band play with lots of energy and can mix styles, turning from an instrumental piece which reverberates with the icy tension of early Cure into a no-nonsense AC/DC blast. Aardvark Studios brought along their mobile recording unit to tape the night?s performances and a CD featuring tracks from all the artists should be available in Millennium Music from the end of this week. All proceeds from the sale of CDs will go towards holding another Battle of the Bands next year. Richard Appleby said he wanted to take the opportunity to thank the Round Table for their support in providing stewards for the event.
