WBCN Rock 'n Roll Rumble Finals
w/ A.K.A.C.O.D., Girls Guns & Glory, The Great Bandini, Guests: The Neighborhoods
Harpers Ferry, 158 Brighton Ave, Allston
April 25, 9:00 p.m., $15, 18+.
Details

After six preliminary and two semi-finals shows, 24 invited bands have been whittled to three potential winners of the 30th Rock 'n Roll Rumble title. The judges usually end up with a worthy lineup of finalists, and it'll be a strong dash to the finish. The mix of styles reflects the diversity of this year's field and this show is bound to rock.

The night opens with the "wild-card finalist" A.K.A.C.O.D. and perhaps a noir-horse to win. They can be considered a successor to the low-rock concept established by Morphine (Rumble losers, '92), which is no surprise. Singer/bassist Monique Ortiz was encouraged to move here by Mark Sandman himself, and former Morphine sax-man Dana Colley weaves his baritone throughout their dark, sensual sound.

When asked about participating, Ortiz said, "Any opportunity to be onstage performing music with my friends is always a good thing." As far as their plan: "I think the worst thing you can do is over-think your set and try to be something that you aren't just to please judges. I'd rather we do our thing, be ourselves, let our music speak for itself."

Swinging over to another side of the rock spectrum, Girls Guns & Glory have supposedly been taking the Rumble by storm and wowing crowds with a fervent blend of rockabilly, country, and Americana. These guys bring the good-time honky-tonk to every gig.

Singer/guitarist Ward Hayden told Bostonist he would have done one thing differently during the Rumble: "Maybe actually have eaten something prior to our performance in the semi-finals. I saw some of the pics taken, and I looked as though I might be teetering on the edge of death!" He also shared, "I do really like the Rumble's slogan of Win or lose, we booze! I think it puts the idea of that even though the Rumble's a competition, it's still supposed to be fun. So whatever happens, have fun!"

If one were to assemble a crack team of local musicians to make your project "rock" at maximum power, it would consist of The Great Bandini members--and they often are the musicians of choice. All have played with numerous top-notch artists including The Pills (losers, '97), Bleu (winner, '01), The Everyday Visuals, and Jake Brennan & The Confidence Men (winners, '04). Together, they make some modern rock magic laden with buzzing guitars and tasty vocal harmonies.

With that kind of experience under their belts, The Great Bandini may be the favorite going into tonight. Asked about their chances, main Bandini Scott Janovitz said, "I think we'll do alright on Friday, but who knows? We've been having more good shows than bad lately, which is very big step for The Great Bandini. The best thing, though, is that it seems like such a great show. This is a bill I'd want to be on anyway. The Neighborhoods are playing, don't you know."

More about The Neighborhoods and other Rumble bands after the jump! Photo of A.K.A.C.O.D. at the prelimary Rumble performance by Johnny Arguedas from photos tagged with "Bostonist" on Flickr.

Legendary band The Neighborhoods will top it off around midnight with a set that could probably win the night again--if they allowed bands to compete more than once. These guys won the whole she-bang in '79, and they still rip it up like you'd expect from musical warriors.

Like many other local landmarks and institutions, the Rumble is perhaps the longest-running "Battle of the Bands" in the New World. As cheesy as such a competition sounds, the bands don't consider it just a battle. HUMANWINE created a page on their site dedicated to their Rumble experience, and it was more informative than the official WBCN page. Part of the page expressed the band thought about using the contest to raise money for an eco-friendly tour bus and to win recording time (thus saving costs).

Most bands that replied to Bostonist viewed the Rumble more like a music fest than a contest, noting that it attracts some of the best bands in town and also offers a chance to be heard by new audiences. Here's what some Rumble participants had to say:

Daniel Bon of ...Future Ghosts: "It was great to get out there and meet new people bands, and attract some new fans in the process. I thought the choice in bands was diverse and it introduced us to some interesting styles of music."

Rick from Hel Toro: "I don't know when the next we're going to get an opportunity to play that type of venue, in front of that many people, with such good sound."

John from Watts: "We wouldn't have done anything differently. We played on a great bill, made some new friends and got a little more exposure. It was nice to be a part of it."

Jason Bennett: "WBCN has been more than supportive of us and we were more than happy to participate in what we thought was 8 nights of great rock and roll."

Scott from Cortez: "We could've cared less about the competition aspect of it. We were happy to be asked. On any given night, depending on judges' preferences, anyone could theoretically win."

Disappearer: "We definitely felt confused, surprised... almost like someone was playing a joke on us when we got asked to participate in the first place. We just did what we always do, played the fuck out of our songs and had a good time."

Thanks to Clay N. Ferno of Wild Zero for at least something critical: "We weren't really bummed about losing, and were happy that (our good friends) The Men did so well. Rumble bands should bring their own sound guy, and I think WBCN should consider bringing the Rumble back to The Middle East, its rightful home."

In this Bostonist's opinion, the Rock 'n Roll Rumble is good for the Boston music scene. Sure, many successful bands didn't win (Mission of Burma, Morphine, The Lemonheads, Letters to Cleo, Piebald, etc), but some excellent bands have (e.g. 'Til Tuesday, Gang Green, The Sheila Divine, Darkbuster, Dresden Dolls). Things even out over time.

It would be hard for tonight's finals to disappoint a music lover. If you're there, you'll be one of the first to know who'll win the big prize!