GRD “Battle of the Bands” schedule confirmed

 The schedule is set for the largest homegrown music concert in the region, commencing Friday July 29 at 7PM in Muscatine’s Riverfront Park. The “Final Five” bands will perform at the following times on The Family Credit Union Main Stage:

7PM     Flight 61
8PM     Thunder Hooker
9PM     Pour Boyz
10PM  1st Impression
11PM  Crashing the FM

KCQQ-FM on-air personality “Gunner” will host the concert and be joined by special guests, 2010 GRD BOB Champion Room 212. Gates open at 5:30, with day-of-show tickets available at the gate for just $10. Kids under 12 are free w/ paid adult. Three-day advance concert tickets are available at many locations throughout the area. For further information, visit www.GreatRiverDays.com

The “Final Five”

as voted by GRD fans to perform 7.29.2011

Each band had the same comments when informed that they were “in” the biggest homegrown music concert of the year, the Q106.5 “Battle of the Bands” at Muscatine’s Great River Days Concert Series. While there is a $3000 purse at stake, each of the finalists are excited to play on the Family Credit Union Main Stage, and plan to concentrate on the music, and not so much on the expectation of winning. All of the bands know that they will be sharing the stage rights with the best acts in the region, and for them, it is a chance to share their passion for music. Let’s meet the “Final Five” in their own words…..

Flight 61 is a rock band from the Muscatine area that has been together for about one year. They are a cover band for the most part, playing songs ranging the 80’s to the music on the charts today. The band does have plans on releasing an album of their own in the future though. The band consists of a group of seasoned musicians with lead guitarist Robert Gilchrist, rhythm guitarist Tim Truitt, bassist Mike Catchpool, drummer Bryan Neipert, and vocalist Steve Kirby.

 1st Impression is all about having fun, catching some beads, and Rock N Roll!  Originally from the Quad Cities area over 10 years ago the current members consist of Lyle Harris on guitar from Rock Island, IL, Jeff Wright on bass from Davenport, IA, John Biondo on drums from Durant, IA and Becky Anson, formerly from Muscatine, now from Sweet Home Andalusia, IL!  The band has released two CDs and also has opened for nationally touring bands such as Dokken, Quiet Riot, Warrant, Pat Travers, 38 Special, Carlos Santana, Cinderella and Wasp.  This isn't your typical "girl singer" band so come to a show and expect beads, stickers, and a group of talented musicians having a blast serving up a big dish of Rock!

 Crashing the FM members are Wil Rathjen on rhythm guitar, Alex Bland singing, Joe Gruemmer on lead guitar, Chris Neff will be filling in on Bass, and our drummer is Curtis Neff. We are just a group of friends coming together to play awesome music and do what we love. We are from the li’l town of Durant Iowa, but don’t let that fool you! We will tear it up! We play a good variety of rock music from Led Zeppelin to Blink 182 and we have also started making some of our own awesome originals.

 Thunder Hooker from Dixon, IL consists of 4 singers that also happen to play instruments. Guitarists Ty Bushman and Tyler Halfacre share vocal duties with bassist Scott Webb and drummer Tim Bushman. Their repertoire includes many classic rock hits from bands like Cheap Trick, Poison, and Van Halen but they are also not afraid to play current pop tunes such as Love Story by Taylor Swift. Expect a party every time you are at a Thunder Hooker show. The Rock n' Roll Extravaganza known as Thunder Hooker was formed in May of 2010.

 Pour Boyz are a rock cover band from Muscatine.  We play a wide range of music from the 70’s, 80’s, 90’s, all the way up to today’s rock and occasionally we throw out a rocking little country tune!  Some may remember seeing the Boyz in last year’s B.O.B. where we finished up tied for 2nd place.  Not willing to settle we have retooled the band around original members lead guitarist Gregg Bryden and vocalist Brian Chick.  The addition of Bob Hilken on bass, Jody Metzger on rhythm guitar, and McClain Bohach on drums have really added some weight to the sound.  Heavy guitars, pounding drums, smooth bass, and crazy vocals bring a different twist to the songs you know and love.

The GRD BOB concert will commence at 7PM, Friday July 29 with special guest host “Gunner”, on-air personality of event sponsor Q106.5 KCQQ-FM. Tickets are available at the gate for just $10, with kids under 12 free w/ paid adult. The fans in attendance that evening will cast ballots to determine the overall winner, which will be announced immediately after the show.
Gates open at 5:30PM, with ample food and adult beverages on hand. Limited seating is available, so bring a lawn chair and enjoy a cool summer Riverfront concert under the shade trees with the best bands in the region, as chosen by YOU!

GRD music fans have decided the “Final Five”
to perform at the Q106.5 “Battle of the Bands”

 KCQQ-FM Q106.5 of Davenport, IA has announced the five finalist music acts that will perform for a purse of $3000 in cash at the 53rd Annual Great River Days Concert Series, to be held on July 29, 2011 at Muscatine’s Riverfront Park.

The GRD “Battle of the Bands” is the only event of its kind, where the general public not only determines the final five performers through an on-line poll, but also decides the winners by ballot that evening at the concert itself.

Since the selection process began in April, thousands of persons have visited the websites for Q106.5 and Great River Days to preview the 14 bands that entered, all in the quest to choose the best homegrown music acts the region. By viewing web-video of the contestants, fans could evaluate and vote for their favorite group on-line. The final poll results are the equivalent of a “command performance” music concert where the show content is entirely driven by the fans.

We are excited to be a part of the biggest homegrown music concert in the region” commented Steve Gunner of KCQQ-FM, title sponsor of the GRD BOB Concert. “We want to promote not only these bands, but all local music acts that are out there every weekend doing what they love.” he concluded.

At the concert itself, each of the five finalist bands will perform a 45 minute set of music on The Family Credit Union Main Stage. Fans will then vote to determine the best band, and with $3000 in purse money at stake, it is assured that these musicians will go all-out to make a lasting impression.

“What makes this concert special, is the level of energy and passion for music these bands bring to the stage” said JJ Koehler, GRD Co-Chairman. “They have been working for months to get to this performance, and when you take that times five, the result is the absolute best homegrown music concert you will ever see, bar none”, he added.

The legacy of winning the “Battle of the Bands” is to return to GRD in the future as an opening act for the Headliner on Saturday evening. This year, 2009 past BoB champion “Seven Shy” will open for “Quiet Riot” on Saturday, July 30. Next year, 2010 reigning champion “Room 212” will have the same honor. “All these bands deserve recognition, and our mission for GRD has always been to support homegrown music as best we can”, Koehler concluded.

 The “Final Five” bands that will perform on July 29 are as follows:

Crashing the FM. Hailing from Durant, Iowa, they placed tied for second at the 2010 GRD BoB concert.

Pour Boyz from Muscatine, Iowa. In 2010, they shared second place with CFM and have a new line-up of members for 2011.

1st Impression. Based in Rock Island, Illinois, these veterans have been playing for 10 years and are currently producing their third CD.

Flight 61, also based in Muscatine, Iowa. Although being a newly formed band, their experience as a group goes back many years playing under different names.

Thunder Hooker, from Dixon, Illinois. This band is well-known throughout NW Illinois, and sports a fan base large enough to make the “Final Five” in SE Iowa.

Complete bio’s, information, and performance music videos of these bands can be found on the GreatRiverDays.com website, and also at Q106online.com. Three-day advance tickets are now on sale for the Great River Days Concert Series, with day-of-show tickets available at the gate.

The “Final Five” to be announced
live on Q106.5 FM
July 8, 2011

 Thanks to all the fans for giving these 14 bands a listen, and making a difficult choice in determining the five finalists who will perform on July 29, 2011. KCQQ-FM on air personality “Gunner” will announce the finalists during his afternoon show on Friday, July 8, as well as emcee the concert itself later this month.

 As for the bands who entered, each is well worthy of a slot on the Main Stage billing. It takes a ton of confidence for a band to “let the music do the talking” for thousands of people to hear and evaluate them in such a format as this, and highlight their brand of homegrown music to new audiences.

 In our opinion, each of these bands are well worth the cover charge at any local music venue, and we hope you will continue to support your local bands when they perform near you in the future.

Great River Days 2011
“Battle of the Bands”
July 29, 2011
Purse increases to over $3000

 GRD is proud to present the third annual ‘Battle of the Bands” featuring the very best homegrown talent in the region, performing on The Family Credit Union Main Stage for over $3000 in cash and prizes.

The 2010 event exceeded all expectations, with dozens of bands vying for the final 5 qualifying spots, which were supported by thousands of fans who voted for these bands in an online poll format. 2011 will see many improvements to the event, made necessary by the popularity and media attention that will be focused towards the contesting bands over the next 4 months.
Primary sponsorship of the BOB will be KCQQ-FM Q106.5 of Davenport Ia.

In addition to the radio liners and advertisements, fans will be able to link from www.Q106online.com to the GreatRiverDays.com “Battle of the Bands” website to preview the bands, and cast their votes for their favorite acts.

It is still the mission of GRD to promote our own home-grown musicians. While many are familiar with the 2010 format, there are some significant changes for this year. A quick summary;

• Bands will no longer need to be fan-nominated to be eligible. In place of that, a band will simply fill out the GRD BOB entry form and submit their information through the GreatRiverDays.com website.
• All pre-event voting will take place through a secure third-party administered web-site, linked from GreatRiverDays.com The Final Five will be determined through the fan-poll voting results.
• The night of show, winners will be selected by the audience in a ballot format.
• Prizes: 1st: $1250 – 2nd $700 – 3-5th $350
• Bands may submit entry forms now through June 13, 2011. Once accepted, they will be listed on the GRD website.
• Fan voting will commence on April 15, and conclude at 11:59PM July 4, 2011

The band must download and submit the BOB application found under the “forms” tab on this website. Once received and validated, they will be placed on the “vote for” page.

Battle of the Bands entry packet and forms – click here