7 months, 73 shows, close to 300 bands, hundreds of songs, and thousands of votes later…the regular season in Chicago has finally come to a close. It seems like only yesterday we started our first show at the Note and here we are on the way to the National final at the Metro. On July 8, 2006 one band each from the Milwaukee and Detroit regional finals will join 14 bands form Chicago in a showdown for ultimate bragging rights and a trip to the international final in Germany. Who the visiting bands will be is unknown, but an eclectic Chicago roster is set and is sure to be a competitive bunch. Ephnix took it home on the opening night at the Double Door with their emotion driven hard rock that was illustrated further in their tearful celebration at the end of the evening. The following night it was Laz, a funky metal three piece whose lead bass player and singer continues to impress and will be a definite contender when the individual prizes come into play. They’ll be joined by the costume-matching, cheerleader toting, soul infused story-telling rock band that is Ferninand Fox. Coming into the final as an eight-piece band, one would surely think that Ferninand Fox would have to be the largest band in the final. Alas, bring on the second Thursday winners Berto Ramon. Berto Ramon will be bringing the only hip-hop to the table for the Chi-town final and will do so with Latin percussion, bass, keys, drums, guitar, and of course two turntables and a couple microphones. Though half the size of the previous two bands, four piece hard rockers Loaded will certainly also be a force to be reckoned with in Chicago. These guys have got catchy songs that are sure to continue to impress crowds and raise hands. Madrhymes is a little more on the heavy side and can best be described as urban infused metal. Closing out the first half of bands in the Chicago final is Mosaic, an experimental rock band who specializes in lengthy songs with technical arrangements. The second half of bands that moved past the semi-final stage in Chicago started with the acoustic based rock band Saturday Morning. Though sporting an acoustic label, these boys can turn it up to 11 when they want to. Next was Nuetral State, some of the youngest rockers to continue to move on in the fest. Don’t let their age fool you; their hard rock is tight enough to have played together twice as long as is possible. The tenth band to move on to the Chicago National final is a three-piece rock band that signed up for Emergenza on a whim. Master of None was simply looking for a gig at the Note and ended up signing up for the fest and taking first place each time out. The final Thursday of the regular season ended up with the youngest band in the Chicago leg of the fest this season, moving on to the Metro. In the 21 and over Double Door, The Ninjaviduals used their quirky arcade like synth based rock to fill one of the remaining four Chicago slots. The next night also had a front man playing the keys that won. The band I speak of is The Saturn Project whose front man is playing double duty as the drummer for Berto Ramon. Also moving on to the final are the Crawpuppies, an acoustic based pop rock band from Indiana. These guys have been playing underdog in the big city for the last three shows and are ready to rock it in the Metro. Finally, to close off the Chicago portion of bands in the final is Tiffany Hull whose solid band and pink paisley have been bringing twangy rock to the fest all year. All the dominoes are aligned for an epic final on July 8, 2006 at the Metro. Well, all the dominoes but the Milwaukee and Detroit ones…which I’m sure will be forces to be reckoned with in the windy city.