Thursday October 23rd we arrive at the Factory Theater (Sydney’s newest premier venue), it’s just down the road from the infamous Enmore and run and owned by the same crew. Wow. What a room! They tell me it’s licensed for 500 but this room could fit 800 easy. Magnificent new NEXO sound system, stage enough for an orchestra and more dazzling lights that Disney Land. This was going to be a fun few nights. The night was opened by Electric Syndicate with some modern rockabilly (think The Living End) and rock was the theme of the evening. Last year’s finalists Jo’s Army put on a solid display of chick rock, as did the very impressive Sharmber (who have one of the best drummer in the competition - I think). The top two bands on the night were The Frass – who offered acoustic rock, with some excellent Didgeridoo playing thrown in the mix and Autopilot, who I like to think of as The Vandolls II, belting out classic rock, ala Guns n Roses. An honorable mention should go to Aspara Blue who put on a very impressive display of indie rock. Friday night provided one of the best displays of overall musicianship we’ve seen in Australia or New Zealand. A young band by the name of Livewire absolutely blew everyone in the venue away with fast shredding, 80’s style guitars and bass lines, combined with powerful drums creating a wall of intricate and impressive sound. The lads cruised through to the final without any problems and are going to be serious contenders for the top spot come December 13. Envy Green opened the night with Classic rock performed by seasoned musicians who also really showed class and gave a lesson of what a lot of the younger bands should strive for. Envy Green also made it through to the Final and will be a lot of fun to watch if you can make it. One of the best metal acts we have on bored this season is Intrepid with everything you’d expect in a metal show, power, aggression and passion. Intrepid gained a wildcard spot and will be playing at the final, definitely worth checking out if you like it loud and fast! Saturday offered one of the more interesting performances we’ve seen. Coming from a band called King Kazafarr. A 5 piece rock band who delve into various styles throughout their set. With props on stage, bandana’s provided for the crowd and a general good-fun attitude, these guys are most definitely going to put on a memorable show come finals time. Boxwell are a 4 member rock line up who play with attitude and skill. A great band to watch and listen to, with a few minor adjustments between now and December, these guys could be up there in the mix. Paradigm offered another great metal performance and scored a wildcard spot at the December final also. All the bands on this Saturday night were great, so special mention and thanks for King Quardy (who’s very young guitar player was an absolute star!!!), H D Brown, Happy Hour and Green Crayon. Sunday night looked like it was almost going to be a disaster. Due to varying reasons 3 bands pulled out leaving only 4 to play. With 3 of the bands doing fairly poorly in ticket sales it was essentially up to one band to make a night of it… and that they did. An 8 piece funk band by the name of Leeroy single handedly rocked the hell out of the Factory Theater. Bringing in around 250 punters, Leeroy played first and after doing their 25 minutes (and getting votes from almost every single person in the room, staff and crew included!) agreed to stay on stage and play another half an hour to fill the gap left by the bands who could not make it. These guys are playing to win and with great songs, excellent musicians and a very exciting and entrancing stage show, they are very serious contenders. A young band called Inflight Entertainment, who have not been on the scene very long, put on a very impressive and entertaining performance also. I look forward to seeing the band next year… with another 12 months under their belts they will be a force to be reckoned with! Al