thrashville's battle of the bands

Emily Brown
Jun 3
3 min read

On Friday 30th of May, The hot & Heavy Show’s

Newcastle crew, emily and ethan attended Thrashville’s Battle Of The Bands. A competition that’s been spread from Sydney to the Gold Coast with 2 more in between, with 1 winner from each battle added to the official Thrashville lineup being held at the Hunter Valley, June 28th. I’d like to start off by saying everyone who played was magnificent and extremely talented musicians that made voting very hard.

First up on the bill was Newcastle’s very own Pit. A young grunge band full of talent and enthusiasm. These guys had an uncanny resembling sound to Silverchair when they were youngsters too. Pit has a punchy sound with long instrumentals and sexy bass solos.

Each member showed strong talent and I couldn’t help but think “that drummer is nuts”, “the guitar is playing him” and “his first language is bass, English second.” They had fun crowd engagement, making everyone cheer as loud as they possibly can, or they’d play the national anthem 3 times. Pit was fun, full of life and skill that I’m very excited to watch grow into something huge.

Up next was an interesting and exciting band, Meet The Rat. I personally loved their odd-ball performance and intriguing energy. Their intro was fun, loud and engaging with lots of barking, followed by a song about one of Newcastle’s iconic swimming spots, the bogie hole.

The guitarist was an absolute shredder that wowed the crowd, while the bassist performed funky frog squats on stage. Their sound and stage presence was very much reminiscent of the Sex Pistols, with a sprinkle of Aussie charm like The Chats.

Now we’re warmed up, let’s talk about our next band AG47. I had no idea what to expect when I saw them setting up a dj deck in the corner and a steel guitar next to it. Self described as “raw, heavy, hip hop x nu metal” I definitely agree. This band was so much fun, with confidence pumping through the speakers and this magnetic energy whipping the room.

I have no notes from this band as I couldn’t tear my eyes away for a second, I was speechless in amazement. The vocalist shared his wild rap skills without missing a beat, while every instrument was played with ferocity and passion. It was nearly impossible to stand still for this set, I couldn’t help but bang my head and wish I had stumbled across AG47 earlier.

After catching our breaths and clearing our minds, we’re ready for the next band, Shacked! This wasn’t Hot & Heavy’s first time seeing shacked so we were pretty stoked to see them on this lineup. They bring a grand sense of psychedelic-funk-rock to the stage with a taste of heavy elements, reminding me of the love child from King Gizzard & Primus.

Not only is their sound different and interesting, so is their look, with all matching fluorescent yellow turtleneck skivvies, and a shirtless drummer with a matching balaclava. Every member of Shacked brought their all to the stage and made the crowd dance the most I had seen the whole night. Unfortunately the guitarist had some technical difficulties with his pedals, but that didn’t stop anyone from having fun and busting a move.

Now we have the final band of the night, Laura Panic. This three-piece had a different yet familiar sound that transports your mind to the early 90’s grunge gaze. Personally, they reminded me a lot of Sonic Youth’s album “Goo” which holds a soft spot in so many grunge/punk/shoegaze lovers hearts.

Laura Panic brought a force to the stage, their music was filled with a deep soulful energy that made people move, dance and rock their bodies. The vocalist has this beautiful whimsical nature that roars from within, creating an enigmatic atmosphere that bounces through your chest. They didn’t say much between songs, however they didn’t need to - their music was the power.

Now the time has come, votes are in and being counted by our host, Cam. Everyone eagerly awaiting the battle of the bands winner. The crowd excited, the band members breaking a sweat.

Cam addresses the crowd, thanking everyone for showing up tonight and the bands for each playing fantastic sets and encouraging each other from the crowd and back stage. Without further ado, the winner that will go on to play Thrashville is...... PIT!

This was a well deserved win and we can’t wait to see what Pit has in store for Thrashville.

Congratulations guys, and see you there!

all photo's displayed are by one of hot & heavy's legendary photographers, ethan. you can find more awesome snaps by him here!