Vespin and the night's other two acts, K Through Six and the Spit Licks, were just three of the nine bands selected to play the semifinals in EMP's month-long battle of the bands. The competition began about four months ago with hundreds of young local bands submitting their demos. Nine bands were chosen to compete, three will move on to the finals, and one will be victorious, receiving a shower of prizes including a professionally produced demo, an in-studio performance on KEXP's Audioasis radio show, and an opening spot for a national touring artist at the EMP.
Every Saturday night in February, three of the semifinalists will play. On the second night of the semifinals, February 9, the judges had no easy task. After Vespin finished a tight set of (dare I say) Limp Bizkit-inspired metal/rock songs, K Through Six hit the crowd with a more melodic and guitar-driven indie-rock sound. After its exciting version of Depeche Mode's "Enjoy the Silence," I personally hoped K Through Six would be taking tonight's competition. But there was one more band to play.
Taking the stage with smiles and humor, the Spit Licks gained the most support from the crowd. After they finished their danceable brand of punk-infused reggae, the scores were counted. To the crowd's delight, the Spit Licks triumphed with their creative sound and insistence on having fun. As lead singer Jared Borkowski put it, "When we play it's not a show. It's a dance party."
The Spit Licks were lucky to have been included in the competition at all.
"We brought our demo here on the last day it was due and the EMP was closed," said 18-year-old Jared. "All the lights were off and we were really pissed because we thought we missed it. We ended up slipping it under a door."
Jared and the other band members, Biscuit, Bennett Kling, and Geoff Kirkwood, were full of excitement when talking about the finals on the 23rd. "There'll be a little bit of rapping, a couple new songs, more dancing... definitely more dancing," said Jared.
"More dancing from us and the audience," Geoff added. "It's gonna be a big party!" MEGAN SELING
