Sorry this is so late. Here at hurdcore we/I am a fan promoting local bands from a fans perspective. I try to post at least one band interview every week and fill in with events or other information that comes to my attention. With that said, here are my comments on the final four bands of the OSU:BOB ‘09…

As the night pressed forward, we continued through the transitions of sundry musical genres. The first fall of darkness brought a new energy to the crowd as people dared to approach the stages in much thicker numbers all resolved to enjoy the full experience of the final four for the 2009 Oregon State University Battle of the Bands.

The recently re-launched Stateside Traffic took to the stage with the nights first piano driven offering. Perhaps the best purely pop composition, this may be the last band I’ve listened to that my wife said, “That sounds good,” and I have to agree, Stateside has a great sound for a pop band…I have to keep my cred right?!

Everyone has their prejudices and I am not exempt. I like my music hard and with very few exceptions within that genre, I like my vocals to be screamed. For me, New Mecca, is somewhat of a paradox as they may have been the band of the night with the most straight-forward hardest shreds and then…they sang. To be fair, they were brilliant for the style they offered and elicited a response from the crowd while also being the only band that had a number of people turn out with shirts of the band. If you like the combination of heavy riffs and singing with an edge, New Mecca will not disappoint.

With the powers of a good rock/pop base and a handsome lead, Blue Ember might have a combination of the right pieces to make a run at stardom. I note without shame that Blue Ember is a handsome man, but I would hate for that factoid alone to overshadow the backbone which is their well composed pop delivered with an entertaining alt/rock edge. The power of this combination was displayed best in their cover of Lady Gaga’s Just Dance where Ember’s instrumental crafts and diversity were on full display.

Perhaps helped in parts by being the last act of the night and the closing of the beer garden, Honest to Empire put on a show to remember with hard licks and rock charisma that owned the night. HTE straight out blistered on squirrel packed tracks such as Punisher and the crowd went insane hoisting members into a surfing frenzy. Security was pretty cool about it, assisting people to the ground safely and releasing most of them to attempt their feats once again. The final act of the night was capped off with a guest appearance from Benny the Beaver entertaining the crowd with a thrashing air guitar performance.

It was a perfect sunny day on the campus of Oregon State University for the 2009 Battle of the Bands. It wasn’t too hot and it wasn’t raining, which is a miracle in itself here in the Northwest. I had been on a emotional roller coaster from a mellow enlightenment furnished by the Reggae Rockers to a spiraling journey into metal mania at the mercy Of Saints and Shadow’s blistering axes now to enter a glimpse into that world from after with a Celtic punk infusion from Poitin and Stout.

Poitin and Stout was the largest band of the battle filling the stage with a variety of modern and uniquely Celtic instruments. PAS played a good set and while interpretive hula dancing was missing there was a regular hula dancer that introduced herself to the crowd.

Oxbow Drive brought the crowd back from the pubs of Ireland to a classic college rock experience and extracting from the crowd the first interpretive tennis ball dancing troupe of the night (perhaps ever). Oxbow certainly gathered a more diverse crowd as their music was more in the vein of the average attendee but they rose above standards with a smashing cover of Kate Perry’s “I Kissed a Girl” and a cowbell mohawk collaboration from the drummer of both Target for Tomorrow and Honest to Empire (perhaps the only man busier that night than the stage crew).

Having passed the mid-point, we’ve had a guest appearance from Lady Gaga, interpretive hulas and tennis balls and a Kate Perry cover, what else could you ask for?! Break As We Fall opened strong with a cover of Queen’s classic “Fat Bottomed Girls” marked not by a Freddie Mercury classic spandex jumpsuit but Kanye West motif with a Jack Johnson sound. I thought lead vocals provided by Evan Churchill were perhaps the most captivating of the night.

Playing only their third show together, Pseudoboss brought an extremely entertaining blend of classic and modern rock. All greats have the knack for making the difficult tasks of their trade seem effortless, PSB has mastered the dark art in music of knowing how and when to manipulate diametric elements to forge timeless songs. If they don’t have all of “it” they are well on their way to making the discovery, apparently the judges agreed as PSB was awarded the OSU:BOB title for 2009. (more from hurdcore on PSB here; previous interview with Noah here)

See comments on OSU:BOB ‘09 (Bands 1-4) here

From the time I received the updates for the Oregon State University Battle of the Bands lineup, I have been excited to see many of these local bands perform live. I arrived on scene just in time to catch the last few bars of One Third Kosher, but it was their sound that led me through the Oregon State University campus from my parking spot to the Memorial Union Quad.

Two stages were set up so that each band had a maximum amount of time for their set and while the next band could set up and sound check. Target for Tomorrow and the Horns of Destruction played second, making a strong case for the return of ska. I have to admit that I haven’t heard much ska since the late 90’s but TFT played a great set. TFT doesn’t play ska by the rules, they have hand crafted a unique blend with a heavy punk trio base that was sometimes angry while at other times chunky-surf and at all times well complimented by a sensationally destructive horn section. (more from hurdcore on TFT here)

From ska we moved to a proposed spiritual enlightenment through mind opening musical enterprise heralded by the Reggae Rockers. Reggae is not my thing, but they must have touched someone because a rare sighting of spontaneous interpretive hula dancing broke out in the crowd.

Our next band shows the eclectic nature of the battle, as we have gone from alternative to ska to reggae and now metal. Of Saints and Shadows launched their set with squealing guitars while sporting the nights first (and only) coordinated fashion statement as each member donned tie dye short shorts. SAS certainly brought a heavier tone to the whole show, with a brutal show of blazing guitars and spastic vocal entreaties all capped by a surprise guest appearance of Lady Gaga rocking her hit Poker Face on the OSU campus. (more from hurdcore on TFT here)

SAS perhaps had the quote of the night, “Maybe this next song you’ll get some water [crowd interaction], we can’t do beer yet.”

Of Saints and Shadows is high energy and enthralling metal that will give you a swift punch to the mouth, leaving a permanent (though toothless) smile. This is a band that clearly likes to have fun – note matching tie dye boxer shorts, a captivating spastic front man and guest appearances by none other than Lady Gaga – but is unmistakeably deep and blistering metal.

SAS came to the Oregon State University Battle of the Bands ready to rock and for as early as they played they elicited a hearty response from the crowd; enough to win them 2nd Place for 2009. This is a young band that has played some of the largest venues in Oregon and understands how to wail. As SAS continues to grow together as musicians and showmen this will be a band that will rock Corvallis (and beyond) well into the future.

Ska isn’t something that you hear everyday, even when ska was big there were only a few band that really breached the mass public. I had heard of Target For Tomorrow and the Horns of Destrction for sometime, but had never seen them live nor heard any of their music as it has only been recently that they added selections to their myspace page. As I understand though, ska has been alive and well throughout the Oregon State University campus and much of that is owed to TFT and their unique brand of ska.

For those that don’t know what ska is, I think it is best explained as a melding of elements of punk and swing/big band. Within this genre there are those bands that are heavier to one side or the other. As with all things, there are those elements that are ransacked by pop or other genres, not always to the benefit of the ideal. Target for Tomorrow and the Horns of Destruction is both and neither – they were heavily punk influenced even at times angrier than most ska bands that I have heard (or even some metal/hardcore bands of late) while utilizing the horns to bring the music to life and creating opportunities for solos within each element.

While ska as a whole may not be making a mass comeback, TFT is certainly relevant. TFT is a band you can bob, slam and skank to, so there isn’t any reason why you shouldn’t attend their next show. Check out their Myspace page to get a taste of what they are offering and keep an eye out for local dates throughout Corvallis and beyond.