Nelson/Marlborough Smokefreerockquest results
Fourteen high school bands and solo acts from Nelson/Marlborough are on the first rung of the ladder to kiwi music
success after making it to the Smokefreerockquest 2006 regional finals at heats held on Sunday at the Nelson School of
Music.
The event drew a capacity crowd of over 400 - a record in Nelson for Smokefreerockquest heats. Smokefreerockquest event
organisers Glenn Common and Pete Rainey say the standard of bands at this stage of the competition just goes up and up.
"We really have to pay tribute to the school teachers who put in so much effort," said Glenn Common. "Contemporary music
is now an important part of the curriculum - it's an area where young people who might not be succeeding academically or
on the sports field can show their strength. Sometimes the opportunity to compete in Smokefreerockquest is what keeps
these kids focussed and at school."
There is now a long list of Smokefreerockquest success stories that include Anika Moa, The Datsuns, Evermore and The
Have. Who will be next? It could well be of these top of the south bands: Durban Poison Marlborough Boys Coll New
Profession Waimea Coll Brassica Nelson Coll Daquiris Nelson Coll Leeweigh Nelson Coll Ever Awake Garin Coll Remastered
Marlborough Boys Coll Mannerism Nelson Coll The Velvet Vendetta Motueka HS Little Black Dress Nelson Coll For Girls
Desire Buller HS & Garin College Jasmine Fa'aso'o Nelson Coll For Girls Sidetraction Collingwood Area School Stiggma Waimea Coll These
bands go on to compete at the Nelson finals scheduled for Friday June 16 at the Trafalgar Centre, starting at 8pm,
tickets $20 from Everyman. This event will be filmed by music channel C4.
Heats and finals are being held around New Zealand right through the winter. Two finalists from each of 24 regions then
go through a further selection process that involves completing set tasks and sending in a video of their band
performing 15 minutes of their original material. Through this process six finalists will be chosen for the national
final at the Bruce Mason Centre on Auckland's North Shore, on October 7th.
At the national final there are big prizes at stake including $10,000 worth of equipment and the opportunity to record a
song and have it played on the Edge radio station. As well as the prize for winning band, there are individual prizes
for best lyrics, best vocals, women's musicianship and the best song - all reinforcing the Smokefreerockquest aim of
generating original New Zealand music. Selected winning bands are matched with past successes in a mentoring programme
supported by the Ministry of Education, and at the national final a scholarship to the Tai Poutini contemporary music
course is awarded.
Visit the official Smokefreerockquest website www.theset.co.nz to access more information, band profiles, MP3 files, media releases, story angles and more (from later this month).
ENDS