Battle of the Bands Final gets the crowd swaying

Last night’s Battle of the Bands Final saw Thornbury group Cassette emerge as victors in front of a sell-out crowd at Bradley Stoke Community School (BSCS).

The five-piece band, whose members all attend Castle School Sixth Form, clinched the £200 prize after topping the audience vote, which took place after each of the nine groups/artists had performed a six-minute set.

The enthusiastic 200-strong audience, a mixture of teenagers and proud parents, helped create a great atmosphere with many leaving their seats to create a swaying mass in front of the stage.

All the bands performed to a remarkably high standard, despite some being relatively inexperienced and at least one making their first public appearance.

Pieces performed by the bands ranged from a cover of the Lady Gaga hit “Just dance” by winners Cassette to self-written work like runners-up Pan Arcadia’s “Whats’ my age”.

The highly successful evening, which was organised by BSCS students Sam Beaumont and Joel Ip,  raised around £1,200 towards the cost of the pair’s World Challenge educational trip to India in August 2011.

Final results

1st: Cassette
Castle School students Georgia Orwell (17), Rachel Osborne (17), Tim Boothman (16), Pete Brown (16) and Ed Ashford (16). They performed “Feeling good” by Muse and “Just dance” by Lady GaGa.

2nd: Pan Arcadia
Bradley Stoke Community School and Wellsway School students Leigh Ayres (15), Luke Consiglio (15), Tom Dingly (15) and Dan Finch (15). They performed “What’s my age?” and “Nothing to aay”, both by Leigh Ayres

3rd: Rasta Man Time
Filton School students Tom Heffer (16) and Alec Gear (15). They performed “You need me, I don’t need you” by Ed Sheeran.

Joint organiser Joel, who compered the evening along with Sam, described it as “[the] best experience in the world”.

Joel’s Mum Kandis added:

“This has been the most incredible community event, fantastic to see so many talented musicians. It is obvious that these talented young people are very dedicated musicians spends hours rehearsing – I’m just so please we have been able to give them a platform and share their music.”

The winning band will be invited to play a set at the Bradley Stoke Community Festival in June 2011.

The organisers say they would like to thank Bradley Stoke Community School for allowing use of the building, sponsors Bradley Stoke Matters Magazine and Southern Brooks Community Partnership for putting up the winning prizes and family and friends who acted as stewards and organised lighting, sound and refreshments.

More photos from the Battle of the Bands Final: PicasaWeb ; Facebook