It won't be long now

In a little more than a month, tickets will go on sale for the Real. Texas. Festival. Hard to believe. It seems like we just finished this thing a couple of months ago.

The festival is shaping up to be the biggest ever. First of all, Cross Canadian Ragweed is the headliner. That should do it right there.

But we also have Kevin Fowler signed, as well as Mark McKinney, Granger Smith, Stephanie Fix, Grupo Vida, Zack King, Railhead and Steely Dan tribute band Naked Lunch.

And, don't forget about the battle of the bands. The battle of the bands is something we believe has tremendous potential. Last year's winner, The Neckties, will be performing at the festival this year. The boys used the battle of the bands at the festival to somewhat launch a pretty full gigging slate throughout the year.

They've played for motorcycle events such as the Garland Police Department Toys for Kids drive this Christmas. They are also on the bill at the Dallas International Guitar Festival two weeks before RTF.

Here's the way it works. Eight bands are selected from an audition process -- which is all spelled out on the RTF Web site (www.realtexasfestival.com) -- to compete in a winner-take-all competition. The prizes include $500 in cash, meet and greet passes to the festival headliner as well as a guaranteed performance slot at the 2011 event.

That's important. There are a lot of bands who compete in these things and even if they win, they break up for one reason or another. Things happen.

Bandmates move away to college.

They just generally lose interest.

They decide to pursue other things.

With the battle of the bands winner getting a guaranteed performance spot in the following year's festival, it is our hope the young bands will stay together. Or, even if one of the members moves away to college or decides to pursue other interest, the remaining members will find a replacement and keep playing.

The Neckties are a good example of this. They implemented a suggestion made by the judges from last year's event to add a bass player, which gave the band a fuller, thicker sound.

The bands are judged on four key points in their performances ... vocal quality, overall musicianship, stage presence and overall performance. Judges score the bands from 1-10 with 10 being the best. The scores are added up from judges and the average of the total is the band's final score.

Hopefully, eight bands will be whittled to four which be pared down to two for the championship round.

The battle of the bands at the festival isn't new. It is a continuation of an event launched by Mesquite Youth Services back in the day. When Mesquite Youth Services went away, the battle of the bands event was mishandled. It was somewhat of a disservice to the people who developed that event ... which was very successful and continued to grow in it's four-year run.

It was assumed by the folding of MYS that the battle of the bands was just going to die. Well, it hasn't. The festival wants to continue this event ... at a different time, in a different month and on a grander stage.

Please -- any high school band, where the majority of the members are in high school or even younger, send in some material and audition for the battle of the bands. It's a good time. What else would you rather do on a Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1:30 or 2 p.m.?

The application and audition process is open. Don't wait until the last minute and come experience rock star treatment. We'll have a backstage area for you to store your gear, hang out, have a few beverages (non-alcoholic of course parents) and hopefully, all of you will video and photograph your backstage experiences for your Facebook pages.

And, although the event was excellent in the past, the festival ramps it up a bit. Bands will perform on a 20x24 foot stage with a roof and a corporate sponsor. In fact, the battle of the bands event may have a title sponsor.

Perhaps most important, the same company who is mixing the house and teching the sound for Cross Canadian Ragweed and Kevin Fowler will have representatives on site teching the battle of the bands event. There will be people to help load in and load out whatever gear you have -- that's right, actual roadies.

Load in and load out should be a breeze because we'll provide complete back line -- Fender twin reverb guitar amps, Drum Workshop drum kit and Ampeg bass rigs.

Check it out ... it's gonna be great.

Back in business

Hey high school kids ... that's right ... I'm talkin' to you.

Actually, I'm looking for high school kids who play in a rock band. It's an actual band ... you know, the kind with instruments and stuff. Drums? Guitars? Keyboards? Anything?

Sorry for the condescending tone, but nowadays when you say rock band everyone thinks about the game -- not an actual rock band.

That being said and since this is a blog for the Real. Texas. Festival., let me announce the return of the battle of the bands.

Any of you high school aged bands who didn't try to participate last year missed a good time. Well, actually, it was still this year. It was last April.

Anyway, The Neckties won the event and picked up a cool $500 for their efforts, as well as a performance slot in this year's battle of the bands.

There I go again ... it's not this year's battle, it's actually next year. Next festival anyway -- April 23 and 24, 2010.

But the folks closest to The Neckties will tell you that participating in the festival's battle of the bands event was a great little shot in the arm for them. They've been able to parlay their title into several bookings and gigs.

Would they have gotten those gigs anyway? Probably so. They're pretty good.

Still, it is nice to know that the Real. Texas. Festival. Battle of the Bands played a part in some success of one of its champions.

In 2010, we hope to have 8 new bands competing for the title. Again, the music can cover any genre. Everyone is welcome and all styles are accepted. The festival itself leans more toward the southern and country style, but the Battle of the Bands can and hopefully will feature grunge, metal, hip hop, rock, electronica, fusion, punk, Brit pop, thrash, alternative, Tejano, soul and, well, you get the idea.

Some bands may shy away from the festival's band battle because the members may feel it's all country. Rest assured, this is not the case.

The format will be basically the same. Applications and entry forms are due by March 31. A committee will audition the material, select the final eight and schedule an orientation meeting.

At that meeting (which will feature free food -- yeah buddy), the rules will be explained, questions will be answered and we'll draw for the initial order.

The battle of the bands is scheduled from 10-noon for the first two rounds. There will be a break for about an hour or so, then we'll roll out the finals.

Hey, $500 is $500. I'm a musician myself and I've played in bands over the years who have gotten paid much less than that if anything at all.

Check it out ... look up The Neckties on Facebook and send them a message. Ask them about the event. I bet you'll find they were very happy with their experience and had a great time.

More importantly, enter the contest. It's a good time.

For rules, entry forms and applications, see www.realtexasfestival.com and click on the battle of the bands photo in the picture scroll on the home page.