THE talent was endless, the energy was pumping and the hall was rocking as the first heats of this year's Battle of the Bands got underway last week.

There was plenty of variety on stage when seven acts performed for a place in the final of the competition.

Judges picked the winners, based on originality, technical skills, presentation, audience reaction and star quality, to a maximum of 50 points.

Winning first place was upbeat band Go Green Monkey, who received a good reaction from the crowd with their contemporary vocals and punchy original songs.

In second place were the youngest entrants, Half Price Waffles, who surprised everyone with powerful vocals and exceptionally organised stage presence.

Both bands are now through to the grand final.

Coming in third was hard-rock band, Roadhouse Bound, who gave an outstanding performance and kick-started the competition when they played first.

The powerful five-piece bluesy band will go onto the reserve list for the final.

There were more great vocals from the original funky three-piece folk-rock band, Astaga, from Monkokehampton, who performed with sensitive backing from drums and bass guitar, which left plenty of space for the clear and emotive vocals and acoustic guitar.

Also joining the mass of talent was singer-songwriter from Okehampton, 16-year-old Ben Baker.

Ben, who now lives in Plymouth, brought a sense of intimacy and involvement to the venue, with emotional depth beyond his years.

Modern metal band From Sorrow to Serenity brought real edge and energy to the hall with strong vocals and a good stage presence from the singer.

The second to last act of the night was spooky gothic-voodoo stage band The Mighty Revz, who rocked through a spirited and smartly chosen set of crowd pleasers, with fine harmonies and great lead guitar.

Heat two resulted in the top three bands only a few points apart. In first place were modern hard rock band The Sum Of, who won the crowd over with strong original songs.

In second place were art rock band from Barnstaple, Jonny Black.

The four-piece band oozed class, style and youthful pop energy, performing great songs, with a real stage presence.

Both bands will join Go Green Monkey and Half Price Waffles at the grand final.

In third place were the glamorous but scary The Adventures Of, from Halwill Junction, who will join Roadhouse Bound as reserve bands for the final.

The competition was fierce with a great performance from local band Faultline, who are all members of Okehampton New Life Church.

The new three-piece from Okehampton served up a crowd-pleasing set of classic rock songs, with the audience joining in a singalong in the chorus.

Also giving an intimate and streetwise performance was female singer-songwriter from Dawlish, Von, who performed on BBC Radio Devon's Richard Green show earlier on in the day.

Young band from Barnstaple, Tied Loose, also played with electric confidence.

Playing out the competition were Alternative Plan, who launched into their set of crowd-pleasing songs.

Heat three will be held today (Thursday) from 6pm in the Charter Hall.

Charities and other stall­holders are invited to get in touch if they would like to join in the grand final on Saturday, August 8 in Simmons Park from 6pm.

For more details phone organiser Richard Appleby on 01837 811172 or email [email protected]">[email protected]