Local musicians reach for PEAK

Van Damsel

Image Credit: Van Damsel

October 08, 2013 - 12:51 PM

KAMLOOPS – In a contest dominated by Vancouver artists five Kamloops musicians are hoping they will come out on top once the online voting portion of the six-month contest is complete.

The PEAK Performance Project has been helping B.C. Musicians succeed through a series of challenges, performances, boot camps and prize money. Both Van Damsel, a Kamloops-based indie band, and Melissa Endean, a country-inspired folk singer, have made the top 20 and after making it through a one week boot camp and are now looking for support through online voting.

Endean now lives in Vancouver and has already released two full length albums, her third will be a mix of “indie, rock and twang” and is set to be released later this year. Her 2009 single “Let it Go” peaked at the number two position after six weeks on the Eastern Canadian music charts and she was invited as a headlining act in Whistler for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.

Richard Bregoliss, Mark Ste Marie, Matthew Rennehan and Matthew Barron make up Van Damsel, a band once focused on death metal but now enjoying success in the modern indie rock genre. The four friends are also working on another album, set to be released early next year.

At a boot camp in August the top 20 musicians were coached in all elements of the business, including stage performance, media, marketing and promotion, songwriting and the business side of the industry. Following the boot camp a series of showcases have been taking place in which all the bands are judged by industry professionals on their live performance.

Now it comes to those who really matter, the fans, as online judging opens Oct. 18 and runs through Oct. 25. The online voting is just one portion of what the musicians are judged on, but it is an important one.

The top five groups will be announced Nov. 5 but the order will only be announced at the final concert Nov. 21. The winner will receive $102,700, second place $75,000 and third place $50,000. Fourth and fifth place will also get prize money of $10,000 and $5,000 but will not get to perform at the final concert.