And so the big UK final is done......On the day Andy Murray won Wimbledon we were rocking hard......and winning on a different level. Sunday 7^th of July bands from as far as Birmingham, Southampton, Southend, Aylesbury and Jersey were competitng for the one slot at the Taubertal Festival in Germany. The Garage in Islington was the venue for this fantastic event and the bands rocked.

First up was TOUGH LUCK KID a 4 piece playing pop rock. A confident and tight band with good visual impact bringing good tunes. A great effort from this for piece from Southend. Next up was STALKER. These Colchester boys really know how to rock. Blending quirky pop tunes with great experience. Technical skill and stage confidence is the norm for these guys. The song about Kelly Brooke stands out as a top tune and we witenessed a full club singing it along....a potential hit?? It's already been played on BBC radio 6 a couple of times and Kelly Brooke herself has tweeted about it finding it amusing.

 Next up was a band from Essex called THE HORSE HEADS. A punk rock trio with balls. The youngest band on stage proved that 3 lads is all it takes to rock. Fresh, young and fearless. A favourite of the Jury they qualified 5^th overall. Excellent placing considering they were only accepted as a last minute filling. TEDDY was next and these boys brought 3 keyboards on stage! People got closer to the stage as the band started with their very good indie, synth pop tunes. A real pleasure for our ears as well as being visually great.

UPPERFIELD took the stage just after 7 with their intoxicating blend of pop melodies and rock sounds. A technically valid 4 piece with a phenomenal guitar player who ended up winning the «best guitarist award» and walked away with brand new Marshall JVM valve head and cabinet. One to watch out for. The energegy level went right up when hip-hop rock combo ARCHEAN SOUNDTRACK took the stage soon after. These boys can rock an audience! One of the crowd's favourites they never let the energy level slip...not for a second. An incredible gig blending an aggressive hip hop style performance with hooks sweeter than a candy shop.

Around 8 o'clock BLACK ORCHID EMPIRE took the stage and simply owned it. A 3 piece heavy rock band reminiscent of QOTSA and many others that basically rock. The rhythm section was so tight together they seemed like siamese twins separated at birth (if it wasn't for the fact that they were born on the opposite sides of the world), all this topped up with a frontman/guitarist/singer that not only he could belt a tune but he knew exactly how to make that amplifier sound great. Tone, Tone, Tone! This band has it all. Visual impact, power, energy and above all: the songs. They were picked from thousands of bands to be part of the Emergenza compilation as well.

SOLD FOR EVIL (in the main picture) kept the volumes up and the energy level as well. 5 musicians with more strings on their guitar and basses than anybody on that stage. Simply the best Metal band we've seen in months. They had it all. The voice, the skill, the songs but most importantly: the energy. Go se them live......they rock. Another band that was picked for the Emergenza compilation was 2KM2 and they were next. Another trio but this time these boys were electronic and electrifying.....simply great tunes, a great show with camp suits and lots of colours. The audience loved it.....we later found out it was their first concert together and so considering this we think that a bit more experience under their belt they could really go places.

The 10^th band on stage were LIP SERVICE. All the way from Southampton these 4 experienced boys showed the place that rock and roll needs to be simple. Riffs that reminded us of ac/dc and singing technique that was miles better than brian johnson....excellent gig! By this time we were all tipsy (to put it mildly) and we weren't expecting the next show: Brilliantly operatic. It was more like a theatre show than a gig. DEVIL INSIDE were young lads from Aylesbury that proved music is just not enough. If you're on stage, you need to make an effort to be entertaining. And that, they were. Great songs, a great singer and an overall great performance from these lads who brough a touch of «different» to the event.

AUDIO DISEASE has the hard task of closing off the event. This young Birmingham 5 piece closed off on a high. Great rock tunes in the style of G 'n' R , The Cult and late 80's rock bands. A good stage presence and uber confidence that even bands 10 years older than them don't have. And so the Judges have brought their verdict to the MC who reads the placings back to front.

As well as that the prize for best guitarist was squeezed in there somewhere and as we mentioned it went to the moster shredder from UPPERFIELD.....band number 3 was SOLD FOR EVIL......band number 2 was 2KM2 and roll the drums please.....the winning band was BLACK ORCHID EMPIRE. They go and represent England at the taubertal festival in germany in August.....stay tunes for more news from the boys!