The Zattzoo Project's annual Battle of the Bands celebrated its 10th anniversary on June 8 with 10 bands competing at The Rainbow Room, and a new wave of interest from student musicians.
"There was just a brand new interest," organizer Kim Blake said. "Most of the signups this year were the youngest ever, coming from all over the Island, with the youngest signup being 11 years old."
Of the 10 acts, four were hip hop artists and the remaining six were ensembles. Bands came from Victoria, Nanaimo, Qualicum Beach, Port Alberni and Comox.
Blake admits she was concerned there wouldn't be a 10th anniversary, as only three bands were registered partway through registration period. Getting support from local music programs has been tough. Todd Flaro from Alberni Teens Can Rock discovered that John Barsby Secondary School has a Barsby School of Rock program, and convinced them to send a couple of bands to the battle.
One of the Barsby bands—Just a Concept—won the battle. "The winners were all between 14 and 16. That was the best part of the Battle of the Bands this year was we saw so many new faces," she said.
One solo performer, just 14, took to the stage by himself after his band pulled out of the competition at the last minute. "He played one song, acoustic. He didn't win anything but the judges were encouraging."
Blake said people who dismiss young musicians because of their age are making a mistake. "People don't remember that Def Leppard were just 18 years old when their first album came out."
Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo helped spread the word about the Battle of the Bands with a written article. Former ADSS student and video journalist Kiara Collinge in 2022 created an award-winning radio documentary, Zak's Legacy, with fellow BCIT broadcast journalism colleague Mac Fleet. The documentary covers the poignant history of the Zattzoo Project and the Battle of the Bands, designed to carry on late hip-hopper Zakkaree Coss's love of music.
The Battle has also drawn some big names over the years in terms of judges, Blake said. Kyle Hamelin moved from competitor to judge and has been doing that for six years. Jason Parsons Entertainment has judged for three years. Keith MacKenzie of Celebrity Management has been on board for a number of years, and longtime host Royal Savoie donates his time to the event.
"We're getting a lot of powerful help," said Blake.
Their relationship with the Five Acre Shaker remains strong: Just a Concept will sign a contract to perform at the Shaker Aug. 9–10 at the Alberni Fall Fairgrounds. Runners up The New Pollution were invited to open for the Eddie Van Halen tribute band at the Funtastic Alberni music festival June 29-30 at Bob Dailey Stadium (part of the annual Okee Dokee Slo-Pitch tournament). The band wasn't able to attend, Blake said.
At the same time, Battle has some loyal participants who keep returning with different bands. Madi Duncan, Phoenix Gates and Drake Shoemaker have participated for eight of the 10 years. As long as their band hasn't won Battle, they can keep coming back—even if they win individual awards, which they all have done.
"We have strong support, but we would like more," said Blake. She's already planning the 2025 Battle of the Bands.
The full list of Battle of the Bands 2024 winners are:
Best Guitarist–Sebastian Robles
Best Bassist–Drake Shoemaker
Best Vocals–Madi Duncan
Best Drummer–Finn Coulson
Best WOW Moment–Alick Mac
Fan Favourite–This Generation
Runner Up–The New Pollution
WINNER–Just a Concept