Local bands had a chance to show the city what they’re made of on Wednesday night as they took over The Slice Bar and Grill.
The University of Lethbridge’s radio station CKXU put on a battle of the bands that pitted the best local bands up against each other in a night on rocking and rolling.
This is the first year that CKXU has put on a battle of the bands for non-youth musicians and according to FUNdrive coordinator Genna Bourchier, she hopes it will eventually lead to more opportunities.
“Although we have no current plans to put on another adult Battle of the Bands, we will be assisting Chinook High School with their rendition of the Tuneful Tangle under 18 Battle of the Bands in May 2018. Over the past couple of years, we’ve worked hard to increase our involvement with the youth population in Lethbridge, primarily through these battle of the bands events,” said Bourchier.
She added CKXU really want to encourage youth to get involved with music and stay involved and that these events are a great way to accomplish that.
Bourchier says an event like this allows CKXU to really build the community they work so hard for and also foster a diverse and inclusive musical stance within the city of Lethbridge.
She says that this event in particular encourages local bands to step out of their comfort zone and see what they can really do on the stage.
The participants of the battle of the bands had a chance to win FUNdrive swag as well as free recording and mixing time.
This night wasn’t just a chance for the bands to showcase themselves either.
The event was put on in partnership with the newly formed University of Lethbridge Gutsy Club.
Co-founder Hjordis Hentschel says that this was a good partnership that allowed the club to raise both money and awareness.
“I hope to raise awareness of Crohns and colitis in Canada and also raise money for the Gutsty Club’s Gutsy Walks team campaign that raises money for research,” said Hentschel.
Hentschel adds that she hopes to put on more events like this in next school year’s fall semester.
The bands were graded on overall professionalism, quality and most importantly crowd reaction and interaction.
