Another week of not-so-challenging rock

The third semi-final round of the Graffiti Rock Challenge saw a return to the usual four-band… The third semi-final round of the Graffiti Rock Challenge saw a return to the usual four-band lineup. But the quantity didn’t translate into a whole lot of quality.

First up was Further Down, a five piece that brought along a decent-sized fan base that chanted them onto the stage. Once they got started, though, it was tough to figure out what exactly was so great about them.

With a sound that fluctuated between latter-day Bon Jovi and a lighter version of Stone Temple Pilots, Further Down brought little originality to their set. The songs “Hypnotic” and “Disillusioned” showed off the lead singer’s almost-Weiland style, while his between-song banter with the audience bordered on Fred Durst territory.

The musicianship was excellent, with awesome guitar work and drumming. But the lead singer’s constant crouching on stage, either in the center of it or in front of the audience – to show how emotional his music was making him – became real annoying, real fast. These Tiger Beat poses didn’t score the band a lot of points. But with the combination of his Mark McGrath look and his band’s every-other-band sound, Further Down could go places.

Second on the bill was the four piece Bad Karma. This group was a distinctly different band from the one before it – and indeed, many other bands in the competition – in that they were a group of older musicians. The bassist, in fact, had a bass that looked a lot like the one Paul McCartney used back in the mid-’60s.

Their sound was similar to that of a bar band’s. They had a rock ‘n’ roll vibe with a country twang in the vocals. There were even a couple instances, like in the last song of their set, where they sounded a bit like Chris Isaak and his band.

While they were enjoyable to listen to, they were average in nearly every way. Their musicianship and lyrics were fairly by the numbers – after a while, the songs sounded similar to one another, with the only difference being the tempo of the guitar playing. They were also very static on stage, never really interacting with each other and only talking to the audience when technical problems arose.

Ultimately, they’re a band that’s fine to listen to, but trying to watch them becomes a hassle – they don’t bring anything more than their music, which added to their bar band vibe.

Next up were the Rockwells. This was a band that, at first, sounded eerily similar to Bad Karma, with a rock ‘n’ roll sentimentality and a country twang. But it soon became clear that this was a country-rock band. And despite not being the biggest fan of country music, they were able to win over at least this judge and numerous people in the audience.

Like with Further Down, the Rockwells had a fairly large cheering section. But once they started playing, their interactions on stage with one another and with the audience got more people grooving on the floor of Mr. Small’s Theatre.

They had a really energetic stage presence and all three band members in front of the drums got involved in the singing; a plus because all could sing well. Their songs were preoccupied with driving on an open road, bars and girls. None of their songs were flat and all were toe-tappingly good. A definite plus was that they played their style – despite being somewhat out of place in a “rock challenge” – well and confidently.

The final band of the night was Underneath It All. A five-piece group that played a sort of punk-influenced angst-metal, UIA – as their fans affectionately chanted – was definitely the most energetic band of this round. They boasted impressive guitar playing that thrashed the stage and the audience, both with their hard metal licks and with the guitarists’ jumping around.

But it was the lead singer’s crazy screaming and jumping off the drum riser that encapsulated UIA’s energy. After a breather of water and telling the audience how “f—— great” they and the other bands were between songs, the lead singer would get his band into another song quickly, screaming and yelling and jumping to get the crowd pumped up.

UIA had a large cheering section as well, so they didn’t really need any encouraging. But they also made the exodus of the crowd at Mr. Small’s after UIA’s first song all the more striking. Perhaps it was because the beer ran out or UIA was just too loud, but a good number of people left early on in UIA’s set – never a good sign. The band was good, but, obviously, not one that appeals to everyone.

When all was said – or screamed – and done, the Rockwells emerged as the third round victors. They join Alisium and Mark Scheer and the Discount Stars in the finals. Next week is the last round of the semi-finals, and it boasts a heavy-duty lineup with the likes of Usual, Ford Thurston, Legendary Hucklebucks and Good Brother Earl.

If you still haven’t checked out one of these semi-final rounds, next week – despite being your last chance – will give you the most bang for your 10 bucks.