On Saturday, October 26th, the Los Angeles Music and Art School held its second annual Battle of the Bands on the spooky GRAVEyard Stage! Local bands from the area competed on our stage for the grand prize of free studio time in our campus Recording Studio. The lineup featured four incredibly talented bands: the alternative rock/punk trio, Damage Control (@damagecontrolofficial), the alternative sound from brothers, tolot (@tolotbrothers), the indie rock trio, Phallen Pollen (@phallenpollen) and the rock punk quintuplet, Rosemead Hooligans (@rockbandcamp). The panel of judges consisted of LAMusArt Voice Teaching Artist, Melina Adragna, local musician of Palm Trees, Abraham Lincoln and Sleepish, Jose Gonzalez, and member of Goosewind, Rick Bunce.
First to take the stage was three piece band from the East LA/Boyle Heights area, Phallen Pollen. They charmed the audience with their indie sound and debuted some new tunes. Following them was teenage alternative rock/punk band from Southern California, Damage Control, who rocked the stage with originals and a cover of “Cherry Bomb” by The Runaways. Next to take the stage was fresh quintet Rosemead Hooligans, who originated from Rock Band Camp Rosemead, an independent, DIY music program in the Rosemead area. Closing out this ghoulish night was the trio of brothers, tolot who opened with a solo acoustic performance from oldest brother, Luca Tolot, that transitioned into a group performance as the brothers seamlessly joined in at the end of his song.
As the judges deliberated, the costume contest took place! A Ghostbuster, Scooby Doo, Jimmy Neutron, Shaggy, a soldier and a cheerleader went against each other as the audience decided whose costume was the best through applause-based feedback. Two winners (Scooby Doo and Ghostbuster) were picked and took home the prize of a month of free private lessons on the instrument of their choice at LAMusArt.
Once the costume contest came to a close and the winners collected their prizes, the judges were ready with the highly anticipated results. In fourth place was tolot, who wowed the audience and judges with their notable improvements in musicality since last year’s event. Phallen Pollen stole third place with the debut of their original songs and cheerful sound. Rosemead Hooligans placed 2nd as a result of their lively stage presence and the personal touch they added to the songs they covered. In first place, with their confident stage presence and infectious tunes was Damage Control, who took home the grand prize. Thanks to the generous donations of Guitar Center gift cards provided by the Guitar Center Foundation, however, nobody went home empty handed!
The festive night came to an end as each band collected their prizes. The audience cheered for the musicians that took part in this Halloween-themed evening. LAMusArt is so grateful to have had the opportunity to host these talented community members on our Courtyard Stage. We would like to thank our judges, and participating musicians for joining us and give a special thank you to Guitar Center Foundation for sponsoring this event!
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