And the Winner Is... Waka Winter Classic Hits Lincoln

The Lincoln, NE Waka Winter Classic was on 1-24-08 at Knickerbockers. Although one of the bands did not show, the event was still a great success. It featured three great local acts all for the low, low price of $5. That admission fee also bought you a chance to vote on which band will make the trip down to Lawrence, KS for the Wakarusa Music and Camping Festival. Wakarusa will be held on June 5-8, 2008. Each band was allowed a 45 minute set to strut their stuff. And here are the results...

Andrews Ave. of Lincoln was the first act to take the stage. They feature Jason Elliot on the drums, Aaron Elliot on the bass, Steve Patton on the keys and Adam Boomer on the Guitar. Andrews Ave. was the only band I had yet to see, but I wished I had seen them previously. They are very "experimental rockish", or if you like I could call them jammy for you. A very exciting and energetic show was led by J. Elliot's on-time and often improvisational drumming.

Steve Patton,Adam Boomer, and Aaron Elliot of Andrews Ave.

Jason Elliot of Andrews Ave.

Second was Polydypsia of Omaha, NE. These guys are the ones to talk to if you want to get your funk fix. They also have quite a jazzy sound to them. Polydypsia includes Tim Kasl on bass, Andrew Malashock on the guitar and vocals, Adam Langdon on percussion and voacals, Kevin Lang on the keys and J.B. Ferguson on the drums. They played Wakarusa last year after winning the Waka Winter Classic. If you want your Funk Goulash, all you have to do is talk to Kasl.

Adam Langdon, Andrew Malashock, and J.B. Ferguson of Polydypsia

Kevin Lloyd of Polydypsia

Tim Kasl of Polydypsia

And last but certainly not least was somasphere. They also rise from the great city of Lincoln. They are made up of Jesse Hodges on the electric drum kit and percussion, Andy Marker on the drums and percussion, Troy Lieberth on the bass and synthesizer, and Brett Smith on the guitar, laptop, and midi. As you may have guessed by the large amount of electronic instruments and absence of vocals, this one is a dance party. Be ready to sweat when seeing these guys. If you have a pulse that is. Sorry to somasphere for having no pictures of you. I had to work at seven the next morning so I was only able to catch about ten minutes of your show. That's OK though because it will give me something to do at Wakarusa, right?

Well, after a short delay, the verdict is in. I feel that each act defiantly had a chance to win, but unfortunately there aren't three spots at Wakarusa for all of them. So the winner is somaspehre. Look for them at Wakarusa this summer if you want get your ass shaking. Until next time...