SMOKEFREEROCKQUEST 2015- Taranaki final results

SMOKEFREEROCKQUEST 2015- Taranaki final results

No Good were named this year’s Taranaki winners of Smokefreerockquest at the TSB Showplace, in front of a supportive and enthusiastic New Plymouth crowd on Friday night.

Vocalist Kalin Wara described their sound as eclectic and attributed their win to their interaction with the crowd.

‘Our band has a good sound because we all work together. I think we won because we had such a good stage prescence and we interacted with the audience. We had the sort of music people like to move and listen to,’ he said.

The other members of No Good are Rory MacDonald (guitar), Campbell Parker (bass), Thaddeus Poole (drums). All members are from Spotswood College.

Second place in the band category went to Pedal to the Metal from Waitara High School, who had a hard rock sound. The members are Dougal Hannam-Williams (vocals), Liam Carroll (drums), Jacob Brand (bass) and Morgan Heke (guitar).

James O'Donovan from New Plymouth Boys' High School placed first in the solo/duo section.

James described his sound as ‘mellow folk’.

‘My experience playing at youth groups helped a lot,’ he said. ‘My parents are my biggest fans, but aren’t afraid to offer constructive criticism which has improved my songwriting.’

Laura Griffiths from Sacred Heart Girls' College placed second solo/duo.

These four acts win musical gear from associate sponsors NZ Rockshops, and the opportunity to gain selection for the national final at Auckland’s Raye Freedman Centre on Friday 11 September.

Smokefreerockquest Founder and director Glenn Common says there are more bands than ever before reaching the high standard required from national finalists.

“This means that real dedication is required to achieve the ‘stand out quality’ that the judges will be looking for,” he said. “They have to capture 15 minutes of their original material on video in a process that demands creativity and musical ability, being able to work together as a group and having good organisational skills. What separates them out is perseverance – industry success seldom happens overnight.”

The full list of awards made on Friday night was:

Band 1st place: No Good, Spotswood College

Band 2nd place: Pedal to the Metal, Waitara High School

Solo/Duo 1st place: James O'Donovan, New Plymouth Boys' High School

Solo/Duo 2nd place: Laura Griffiths, Sacred Heart Girls' College

Band 3rd place: Maybe Next May, New Plymouth BHS, Francis Douglas Memorial College

APRA Lyric Award: Laura Griffiths, Sacred Heart Girls' College

Lowdown Best Song: Garage Girls, Spotswood College

Smokefree Award For Women’s Musicianship: Hunter Stembridge, New Plymouth Girls' High School

People’s Choice voted by text: Weekend Contradiction, St Mary's Diocesan School

MAINZ musicianship award with the opportunity to win a $4000 MAINZ scholarship: Morgan Heke (Guitar), from Pedal to the Metal, Waitara High School

Smokefreerockquest, powered by Rockshop, has national winners’ prize packages for bands and the solo/duo winners that include $22,000 in Rockshop vouchers, a $20,000 NZ On Air recording, video and promo package’ a ‘Decent Exposure’ campaign on FOUR, a photo shoot with Thievery Studio, a branding package from Imaginary Friends and the Unleashed Travel ambassador award – a seven day trip to Fiji.
There is also the MAINZ (Music and Audio Institute of New Zealand) Scholarship for Outstanding Musicianship, the APRA (Australasian Performing Right Association) Lyric Award, the Lowdown Best Song Award and the Smokefree Women’s Musicianship Award. The People’s Choice award is voted by text with the opportunity to open the Smokefreerockquest national final.

Finalist judging process: Two bands from each of the 24 regional finals submit video footage for selection as one of the six bands to play off in the national final. Judging is done from a pool of 50-60 bands that also includes Rockshop Second Chance, an opening for established bands (playing regular gigs) who don’t feel they played their best on the night. The top two solo/duos from each region go through the same process, and three of them will go ahead to the national final.

More info at sfrq.co.nz or facebook.com/thesfrq

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