MEAGAN CLEMENTS | staff writer

Twenty four64 wins the annual Battle of the Bands through an evening frought with technical difficulties.

Soaked in soul and drenched in rhythm, seven bands performed at the Battle of the Bands on Oct. 16 in UTCC. Twenty four64 was announced the winner of the show.

“I liked Rozaline the best definitely. I think they should [have won] the whole thing,” freshman English major and emcee Shauna Duncan said.

Although Duncan felt that the organization and advertising for the event could have gone more smoothly, she was pleased with the turnout of approximately 150 students.

The event, hosted by Communiversity and concert intern junior music major Stephen Lim, featured seven bands: Amaradio, Jake Salley, Skyline Division, Twenty four64, Kellen Humphries, Robbie and the Cast of Thousands and Rozaline.

The bands were judged in four categories each worth a total of ten points: stage presence, instrumental talent, song quality and student reaction.

Fans were invited to cast their votes as well and all votes were tallied and averaged together by Communiversity at the end of the event.

“Personally my favorite [band] was Twenty four64,” freshman biology major Brittany Parsons said.

Parsons, who also rocked out to Rozaline’s set enjoyed the raffle drawings and loved how the emcee’s kept the audience entertained throughout the night.

Among several raffled prizes, a stylish electric guitar had one audience member almost as enthusiastic as when Twenty four64 was named the winner of the Battle of the Bands.

With indie music increasing in popularity and budding musicians seeking to achieve a better artist/audience relationship, the diverse genres excited listeners to do more than just listen.

While Skyline Division’s tactics encouraged audience participation with synchronized clapping, Twenty-four 64 fans engaged by bouncing up and down, whipping their hair about and leaving the floor vibrating.

Jake Salley, an eclectic acoustic artist and singer/songwriter — think Ben Kweller — captivated the audience with his country/folk sass and chorus driven pop/rock. Elements of mystery and suspense defined several of the beginnings of his scores and the resemblance to old-school funk throughout complemented his unique use of rhythm and vocal range.

From the Latin flair of Humphries set which led to increasing decibles and incongruent dance moves to the audience chanting “one more song!” at the close of Rozaline’s set, the night proved enjoyable.

Robbie and the Cast of Thousands won sophomore graphic design major Paul Ward’s vote.

“I really liked the visuals [they used] and they had a unique sound; I enjoyed it,” Ward said. Ward added that, despite technical difficulties including microphones cutting out on stage, the night was worthwhile.

While some viewers felt that the performers needed to polish their stage presence, others such as freshman undeclared major Joseph Orabona were complimentary of the musicans’ stage presence.

“I liked Twenty four64 because they’re all Hawaiian and I thought they had the best stage presence,” Orabona said.

The music that night, minus the poor acoustics was fun and relaxing.

For some, it was ‘too loud for comfort,’ but for others it was an escape from studying for midterms and an excuse to let loose.