Round II of the Semifinals of Battle of the Bands was held at HiFi in Indianapolis on January 15th. Six bands competed to move on to the next round for a chance to win a cash prize of $10,000 and a tour van as well as a one-month membership at Soundspace and the pressing of 250 vinyl records!  You could tell that all of the bands knew what was at stake when they took the stage as they all brought stellar performances that kept the crowd moving!

First up was Side Hustle from Bloomington with the crisp vocals, a very entertaining and expressive guitarist, and funky vibes.

Next on the list was Shiny Penny from Kokomo, a personal favorite. Dean and the band kept me captivated with their beautiful lyrics and emotion.

Veseria, from Indianapolis, was next up, and though they unfortunately had some technical difficulties, I was still impressed with their raw talent.

Fourth on the lineup, and the winner of the evening, was Porch Kat from Muncie. The crowd favorite, who is ‘not a jam band, but a band that jams’, did just that!

I really had no idea what to expect by the name of the fifth band of the evening, Out of the Blues. I really loved band’s mesh of hard rock and blues. You would think the sounds of these genres would clash, but were performed with so much energy and feeling from every member of the band that they really drew you in to their performance.

Closing out the evening and ending up in second place overall was J. Elliott from Indianapolis. Jay’s lyrics are raw and relatable, and frankly I am glad I had the distraction of my camera in my face when he sang about the loss of a parent, because the lyrics pierced my core.

Battle of the Bands was a packed evening of local music and definitely a great reason to be out on a work night. Shop local, drink local, listen local, and get out to round 3 of the Semifinals at HiFi on January 22!