Nope, it’s not the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament that has longtime booking agent, soundman, and local musician Stuart “All Night” Johnson (of local band Allnightkungfu) all excited it’s, there’s another kind of “March Madness.”
In 2006, Johnson (pictured) arranged a month’s worth of “March Madness Battle of the Bands” rounds at A Dough Re Mi in Mt. Pleasant. The rounds went well, with a wild variety of mostly metal, punk, and indie-rock acts belting it out in front of staffers and guests who judged their “stage presence, musicianship, audience reaction, and professionalism.” The contest became an annual event and relocated to the Village Tavern in 2007.
Johnson announced the fourth annual “March Madness Battle of the Bands” dates a few weeks ago. Judged by local characters, the locally-based, four-round series takes place on the Tavern stage for three straight weekends in March. “Unlike some local band battles, this is an open competition for original artists only … and it is completely run by musicians,” says Johnson.
FRI. MARCH 6 — Tripping the Mechanism, She’s A Princess, Tenfifty, From This Day Forward, 9 p.m.
SAT. MARCH 7 — Red House, Cole Train, Collectors Set, and Campfield, 9 p.m.
FRI. MARCH 13 — Dewey Muggles, Bodies Full of Magic!, Pineapple Incorporated, Flood Empty Lakes, 9 p.m.
SAT. MARCH 14 — Noumenon, The Izm, Sonant, Mare Of Steel, 9 p.m.
FRI. MARCH 20 — Sound Threat, A Better Understanding of Nothing, In These Shallow Waters, and Beneath The Courtyard, 9 p.m.
SAT. MARCH 21 — The Whisperjets, Skye Paige & The Original Recipe, The Book Of Lies, Zero To Nowhere, 9 p.m.
SAT. MARCH 28 — “Grand Finale”
(poster art by David Auld; photo by Kathleen Wehle)
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