Horsham Battle of the Bands crowns its winners

The winners have been crowned in a Horsham Battle of The Bands contest which defied the odds.
Artaca in action - photo by Cheryl ZimmermannArtaca in action - photo by Cheryl Zimmermann
Artaca in action - photo by Cheryl Zimmermann

In an awful year for live music everywhere, somehow the organisers managed to make it happen.

The winners in the original bands category were: first: Artaca; second: Soho Dukes; third: The Doomsville 3.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The winners in the acoustic originals category were: first: The Nick T Band; second: Danny Dangerously; third: Tony Whiting.

The winners in the cover acts category were: first: The Fat White Dukes; second: Stone Cold Sober; third: The 19 Naughties.

Competition spokesman Jamie Stanley (aka Stan/Mailman) said: “What an incredible weekend! Thanks so much to everyone that made it possible, not least of all our gold sponsors Woodstock IT for sticking by us, without whom this event just wouldn’t have happened.

“Big thanks to The Rec Rooms management and staff for providing us the perfect COVID safe venue and for the amazing sound. Special thanks to the audience on both days who stuck to the social-distancing and mask-wearing rules, ensuring we were able to stage this year’s event safely in these difficult times. Last but not least, a massive thank you all the bands who entered. The standard was extremely high in all categories, everyone was genuinely brilliant at what they do and all the acts were very different this year. But in each category, from our point of view, there seemed to be two acts that really stood out and hardly anything at all between them. The judges tended to agree and were unanimous in their choice of winner in all three competitions.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Artaca – the youngest band to win BotB for over ten years at the age of just 13! – and The Nick T Band win a recording package with Audiobeach Studios in Brighton, a photo shoot with Chilledvondub Photographic and a release package with AWAL.

“If you weren’t there and missed our livestreams, you can watch all three shows again on our page at https://www.facebook.com/horshambotb

“We like to think we’ve set a precedent for how live music and dedicated venues could survive in these uncertain times. We are, however, a non-profit organisation, so don’t have the same pressures as professional businesses. In our view, until such time as live music is again financially viable for professional artists and venues, it is imperative that they have appropriate financial support moving forward.

“Otherwise there will be no live music events like this in the future.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

• Talk is increasing of further lockdowns in the UK. What do you think of the situation? Join the Big Conversation and have your say on everything from healthcare to how the pandemic has affected you personally and how we make our communities stronger: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/bc-worthing

Related topics: