IT was a raucous night in the Charter Hall last Thursday as Okehampton?s inaugural Battle of the Bands got underway with a big crowd treated to some fantastic live music in the first heat.

Two bands were chosen by judges to go through to the final which takes place on Thursday, August 12 ? it must have been a difficult choice.

First up were Blue Steel. They delivered a great performance, despite the dual handicap of being the first band on and having to perform without their singer who had to drop out at the last minute due to illness.

They were followed by Element, a young band from Tavistock who showed great promise.

Next, Okehampton was treated to the Hendrix experience courtesy of EXP, who delivered classics like Purple Haze plus a Beatles cover from their psychedelic heyday ? Tomorrow Never Knows.

The guitarist may not yet have mastered the art of playing his guitar with his teeth but the group very much capture the Hendrix sound. It is easy to see why they?ve been booked to play a headline gig in their own right at the King?s Arms next month.

Next to rock the Charter Hall were young Launceston-based band Alias Jones. Their description as ?original AOR? belied the harder edge to their sound and their appreciation of taut dynamics.

Their female lead singer gave an impassioned performance and even delivered one song in Spanish. They finished with a marvellous speeded-up cover of REM?s Everybody Hurts.

Okehampton band Raucous Pigeon had plenty of supporters in the hall as they ran through a ferocious blend of rap and rock and led the audience in impromptu chants of ?Pigeon! Pigeon!?

They closed with an instrumental which allowed charismatic frontman Steve the chance to dive into the audience and run around with a replica pigeon. Exhilarating stuff.

It was a hard act for the next band to follow, but young three-piece punk combo Flick rose to the challenge. Their thrashy three-minute shout-alongs were reminiscent of back-to-basics US punk groups like Sum 41. Their confidence grew and as their allotted 20 minutes drew to a close, they seemed reluctant to vacate the stage while they were obviously having so much fun.

The next band were Two Foot Giant, a Launceston-based funk/metal act who again proved hugely popular with the crowd. The band?s bassist was particularly accomplished, and delivered funky basslines.

Last but not least were Beggars Belief, who delivered polished versions of songs by the Stereophonics, Midnight Oil, the Who, Paul Weller and local favourites Muse.

So following an unbridled air guitar contest and a spot of off-the-cuff body-popping in the centre of the dancefloor, the judges? decision was announced by Richard Appleby, compere for the evening and the man who came up with the idea of a contest to boost the live music scene in Okehampton.

Joint first place went to Raucous Pigeon and Two Foot Giant while EXP were chosen as a reserve and may make the final, depending on how the other heats turn out.

Raucous Pigeon drummer Joe was delighted with the result and said he had been amazed by the audience response to their music: ?It was very good, we?ve only had seven practices altogether as a band, though we have all been playing music for a while.?

The second heat is tonight (Thursday) from 6.30pm in the Charter Hall with the following groups: Neil Hubbard band, big band with female vocalist; Zen Pixies, Pink Floyd-inspired duo; And Others, psychedelic rock; Black Tulip, pop/rock; Freakbywire, grunge; Rock Salmon, local rock band; Fosta, high energy rock, and Speed, a college band playing punk.