Live Music Showcase at Manchester Regional Final- Feedback

The Regional final live music showcase in Manchester, took place as The Willows welcomed the best of unsigned talent for the latest MusicRadar Live and Unsigned Regional Final of this year’s Competition.  The Willows in Manchester provided a good start to the North West region, with guest acts Pegasus Bridge and The Lottery Winnersheadlining the showcases. 

Judges presiding over the Manchester Regional Final included Mark Orr Head of A&R at Lab Records, Ollie Jackson OSFest Event Coordinator, Claire Curran from OurHouse Music, Louis James-Davis of the Madison Group, UK music examiner Stuart Slater and Grand Central Music’s Rudi Kidd.

Well done to all the acts for putting on a great show! Credit goes especially the few who made it through to the Live Area Final shows and the North West England final on Sunday 8^th May 2011 at the Willows, Manchester www.thewillowsonline.co.uk

Find below feedback for the day. Please be aware views expressed by Judges are opinions and subjective to that particular Judge panel. These views in no way reflect the views of Live and Unsigned, but are published with a view to being beneficial to the performing bands and singers who performed. So please take the feedback onboard with a view to helping.

Final 1

Ian Hendrick- A performance full of individual personality. Needs to work on vocal range, and guitar was out of tune. Did well opening the show, but more audience interaction is needed

Jessica Ball- Great voice andLooked comfortable on the stage. Needs to develop stage presence and crowd interaction, but definitely one to watch for the future!

Mr Jayy- A lot of music being produced for a three piece band. Some timing nerves initially, but the performance picked up as it went on. Good crowd participation, but guitar technique needs to be developed. Rehearse more to tighten up the performance

Emily Leonard- Good band and nice singer. Great drummer. Whole band need to look at image to stand out, and remember to interact with each other on stage

Jonny Breakwell- Nice performance, reliable musically, but needs an edge. Needs to work on image and musical direction. Seemed slightly nervous, room for improvement, but really good prospect

Craig McDonald’s Clan (AKA The Clan)- Great presence on stage, musically could improve, but clearly love the music and real crowd pleasers. Need to develop image

Liam McGenity- Has a lot going for him, good voice and good guitar technique. Nice link between the two songs! Lacks movement on stage

Enemies for Friends- Great drummer and good overall sound, but lead vocals could improve, perhaps add another singer to lift the vocals. Stood very wide apart on stage, there was no chemistry between the band members. Need to gig more to improve confidence

Mike Like-Great voice and very easy listening. The performance needs something extra to make it stand out.  Maybe consider working with a backing band; a pianist and light jazz drummer would work really well with vocals

Everyday Goldfish- Heading in the right direction! Great energy and enthusiasm on stage. Be careful with instruments, as the singer was drowned out in places. Need to develop an image, and further develop guitar and mic technique. Keep going boys, you’ll develop with time!

Justin McGurk- Split decision with the judges. Good overall performance. Very good singer, butseemed nervous, needs to develop stage performance and audience interaction

Sole- Powerful and projecting. Tone down your image-you have no need to make too much effort to stand out, you sound fantastic which already makes you stand out! Rely more on your music and ability than your image!

Pacific- Very tight musically and really confident band members! Great song as well. A good performance overall with a good selection of sounds. Love the keyboard.  Simplify drum parts to make the select complex rhythms stand out and allow interaction with band mates. Need to work on a collective image

Thea Kate- Really good for someone so young! Seemed nervous when performing original material, work on your confidence, you sound great! Needs to work on overall delivery, but real potential for the future!  

Tom Ramsbotton- Good voice, but watch mic technique in places. Needs to work on overall delivery and needs to relax more to give a stronger performance. Real potential for the future

Final 2

E.V.O- A solid performance , but needs to re-think the beat, it wasn’t crowd pleasing. Image needs improving, would love it to reflect your personality more

Ocean City- Need to watch tuning. The band have a long way to go. Work on image, vocals and confidence on stage. Get the band members interacting with each other!

The Refines- Great sound, one of the better bands seen all day. Good performance with a lot of energy, but need to combine a collective image

Alabaster Queen- Consistent, but needs to break out of her boundaries and find something to make her stand out. Needs to develop stage movement. Really good voice though

Chokeslam Charlie- Band sound overall really good, but vocals came in off key.Need to develop harmonies. Brave attempt with rhythmically complex material

Lucy Spraggan- Interesting and original, and a fantastic crowd grabbing start. An overall well delivered performance. Try not to rush-the slower songs suit you better.  Work on an image to make you stand out more

Grounds- Adidas image is a little dated. Took a while to musically get into the performance- it did improve as the performance went on, but needs to be engaging from the start. Improve on dynamics and harmonies, great potential though!

Blair Campbell- Good on the guitar, vocals could improve a little. Some more vocal training could make you a great artist. Overall good performance and real potential can be seen

The Great Divide- Good performance and really good song, but lack energy on stage. Lead singer needs more confidence! Promising future, but performance on the day was a bit too safe- need to show some edge! More crowd interaction and performance is needed

Borito- Good performance, but too aggressive. Looked comfortable on stage, clearly has ability, but not sure he shows enough ability to stand out in area finals. Maybe consider working with a female vocalist for some of your original material.

Paul Leay- Crowd pleaser! Has bags of potential and ability. Really good mix of original and cover, showed that he can perform different material. One of the best we’ve seen in this genre. Think about an image to make you stand out.  You’d sound great with a backing band, maybe consider this for the future

Cardinal- Good performance, but stage craft could improve. Great song choice, and original song was well put together. Work on stage movement, interaction and audience participation

Steve Mitchell- Good performance and immediately likeable. First song was much stronger than the second. Needs some more experience to develop style. Work on vocal dynamics and strumming technique

Joaqim Lewerin- Good band and a really enjoyable performance. Great choice of cover song, really showed your ability. Great vocals make this band stand out. Very catchy original song. Interaction between band members could be better. Best band of the day so far!

The Lucky Pennies- Split the judges’ decision. Great lead singer and strong aspects in the performance but need to work on the original material. Watch your communication and movement on stage, should have stayed for the results – you missed out on being called on-stage!

Well North of Watford- Musically good, but need to work on the material, improve the song movement and dynamics. Would be a stronger performance with a backing band

P3- Great confidence on stage, and clearly had a good time. You came to let us know you were here, and certainly did it! One of the best and most original acts of the day, but you need a collective image!! You also need to organise the stage movement.Female vocalist- make sure you keep control of the vocals all the way through. Need more interaction between rappers.  Keep rehearsing!

Vayne- Good overall performance and great vocals. Great song choice and a likeable band. Quite original and have great potential for the future. Performance and ability are there- need a collective image

For those acts who didn’t get through the Regional Finals, don’t forget to use your Wildcard! All acts have been given a Wildcard in the form of a national public vote. There are two places up for grabs and just two weeks to make your mark, so keep an eye out on the website and get voting for one of those last Area Final spots!

If you’d like to come along to see some of the bands and acts that made it through to the North West England final it’s on Sunday 8^th May 2011 at the Willows, Manchester www.thewillowsonline.co.ukgo to the Live and Unsigned website to purchase tickets with the following link;http://www.liveandunsigned.uk.com/live_shows