89X Home Boy Battle of the Bands Finals @ TNT's 12-20-07
89X Home Boy Battle of the Bands Finals @ TNT's 12-20-07
If you really love local music, then TNT’s was the place to be last Thursday as 89X was in the house with the Finals of their “Home Boy” Battle of the Bands, a contest to win the opening slot for 89X’s New Years Eve Bash with Hot, Hot, Heat over at the Dearborn Hyatt Regency. Five bands with a wide variety of music styles ranging from Rock, Pop, Metal, Punk, and even Hip Hop competed for the grand prize from 89X. With TnT’s packing in the crowd, it was nothing short of a crazed group as everyone had their personal favorites with most letting it be known who it was they were here to see. We caught the first act up the week before when they won their play in battle, Red Letter Anthem plays a Hip Hop Rock style that really burns it up as their sound gets things pumping including their fans. Fronted by local rapper “Elementzero”, they mix up the rhymes over top a driving rock beat that is anchored by Josh (drums), Tom (bass) and features the blazing guitar hooks of Shane. Non-Stop action followed as they dropped a six song set that included Illusionist, All The Way, & Freestyle, which is actually done freestyle (with the subject picked by the audience), they even set the Drum Kit off to the side of the stage as the guys take turns ripping it up on the drum riser! I would expect to hear more from this young group as they are readying some new tracks that Dr2 is anxious to sample. Great bunch to talk with too as their feet are planted firmly on the ground, check them out January 9th over at the Royal Music Theater. You can sample up their sounds on their site by finding them in our “Top Friends” over on our MySpace page, or pick them out in the Dr2 Band Links!
In the second slot tonight was one that we’ve never had the chance to see before, so we were excited to get a chance to catch their set here. Almost Free came to TNT’s with their unique style of music that veers from the mainstay, and turned some heads in the process with one hell of an awesome set! A definite Detroit Sound that would appear to have been bred straight out of the city, Almost Free, laid down a seven song set that had us here at Dr2 feeling as if we were in Corktown at the Lager House! Kranking it up with their Volumes, this power trio of Andy (vox/guitar), Bobby on the bass and Garren providing the “bombastic beat” from behind his kit, gave us the sounds of the city with their My Veins, Lines, and Broke Down Town as they had TNT’s rolling with their laidback/high energy set! We’ll be keeping an eye on these guys and you can to by heading on over to their MySpace site by finding them in our “Top Friends” page, or you can catch them January 27th at the Elbow Room in Ypsi.
Lithium. Go ahead, say it again, Lithium. Even the name warns of trouble brewing when this power house group steps up on stage to deliver that loud volume, high energy, visually explosive set that may result in a cerebral aneurysm! With front man Pauly taking the spotlight, Lithium delivered another spectacular demonstration of blending their Hardcore Metal with their somewhat lighter side and the result is an amazing journey that can be best described as extreme roller coaster ride, slow and melodic on the climb up, fast and furious on the way down! Always a crowd favorite, Lithium had a full “front stage” tonight as the fans begged for more, only to be cut by the show organizers. Got to be fair to all the Bands I guess, as they did complete their scheduled set. You can catch them performing The Hunt, or Melting Away over at the Harpo’s Metal Fest January 26th where we’re sure you’ll be blown away yourself. Check’em out on their MySpace page which we have listed in our “Top Friends” on the Dr2 page, or as always, find them in the Dr2 links!
The 4th band tonight was certainly the hometown favorites, since Tripline hails from just down the road from TnT’s, claiming Mt. Clemens as the bands home. Dr2 had the unique opportunity to catch this newly “re-formed” group about a month or so ago prior to tonight, where we were definitely blown away. Hanging out upstairs in “The Rock Room”, they have a weekly open mic night on Wednesday’s, were local performers or duos come to play their originals and/or covers. But on this particular night there was this “semi-band” who were to take the “corner” and perform for the usually small crowds that do more hanging than listening. These guys changed that that Wednesday night as they ripped the place apart within 15 minutes. Getting a chance to chat the guys up afterwards, they informed us that they were putting this Tripline thing back together and would soon be doing shows again, which brings us to tonight. As Tripline jumped up on stage, the 
first thing we noticed was that they were now a full band, and the 2nd thing we couldn’t help but notice was the literal “Army” of fans who came around the corner of TNT’s and planted themselves directly in front of the stage. Pretty much took up every single square inch of real estate that wasn’t vacant (and some that was!). Wow! What a transformation from the Rock Room to TnT’s, in what was nothing short of a phenomenal set from this rock band whose fronted by one charismatic singer in Chris Allan, has 2 guitarists in Paris, and Kenny Surma, with Chris D’Angelo on keys, and features a rhythm section of bassist Donny Carlson and drummer Brian Hughes. Pure mayhem ensued as Allan lead the show, crazed fans reaching out to show their support, while Tripline held us all hostage, mesmerized by the endless flow of hooks that you could not escape! A true contender, check out Tripline as they kick their machine into high gear hitting up The Ritz on January 12th, & The Emerald for the Girls Gone Wild Party on Valentine’s Day, find them in our “Top Friends” on our MySpace page.
Capping off the night was Konnipition Fit, lead by Jason Caine, (vox, guitar) former guitarist for 60 Second Crush, with their power pop kind of punk that is laden with heavy visuals. Armed with an 11 song set list, and backed by Lacey (guitar), Eric Vancil (bass), Keith James (drums), and the ever present “Amber Kat” (backing vox), Konnipition Fit pumped their way through their set of their fun loving, guitar shredding, feel good songs much to the delight of the TnT’s crowd. Starting things off with their mainstay Rush Hour, Konnipition Fit knows how to throw down the “visuals”, with Amber Kat constantly on the “prowl” as she prances across the stage while backing Caine on the vocals. Giving Dr2 our favorite in Catnip, Konnipition Fit turned up the heat again with Bi-Girl before Caine hit us with his ever prominent guitar solo with Amber Kat on her knees in worship! Another rip it up set from this group as they ended the night with a cover of Blondie’s One Way Or Another. Konnipition Fit can be found playing all over town, so go ahead and hit up our Dr2 Links or our “Top Friends” where you can find all things Konnipition Fit!
As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end and tonight was no exception as 4 of the 5 bands would be heading home not a winner, but none should feel chided as all 5 groups performing tonight were great within their own right. It’s all comes down to exposure in the long run, and this 89X Home Boy Battle of The Bands gave all of these groups a lot of that, not only on tonight’s stage, but the night they each won their own play in battle. Well after a long night of enthusiastic rock & roll, Tripline was named the winner and will be playing in the opening slot of the 89X New Years Eve Bash with Hot, Hot, Heat over at the Dearborn Hyatt Regency! Remember for all the Local News, and Reviews keep it tuned right here to Detroit Rock Review.
Over M>