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Tag Archive for: EL-Emcee

With over 300 aspiring acts hoping to be the lucky winners of this year’s Firestone Battle of the Bands, it was narrowed down to the top three who made it to the finals at newly built BIMM Birmingham. A quick recap to remind us all about the finalists; we had Welsh pop-rock band Fire Fences who despite their age had already played a sold out show at LA’s legendary The Viper Room and have one of their tracks picked for the new NASCAR Heat II video game, rapper EL-Emcee who’s been making countless tracks from his bedroom back in Ipswich and the heaviest band of the lot, Bristol’s Nuns of the Tundra. 

As we arrive to the freshly painted BIMM, all the acts are patiently waiting for sound check, dress rehearsals and their time to shine – streamed live for the world to watch. I mingle around and chat to the bands to see how they’re feeling, and how they’ve been preparing for the finals.  

Nuns of the Tundra:  

We’ve been working on ways to make the songs more interesting, and changed one of them around to give it a massive and dramatic ending. We also played a gig last night, almost like a rehearsal gig where we asked everyone for feedback on what they liked, but also what needed to be improved and could be done better. We’ll be playing two quite different songs as well to show versatility. We’ve been working towards the final, but we’re also in the process of writing new material and speaking to different producers, so whether we win or not we’ll still venture back into the studio. 

 

EL-Emcee:  

I’m very excited to play, really looking forward to it. I was expecting it to be a lot more nerve wrecking, and had it been last year I know it would have been, but I’m feeling quite relaxed. When I first entered the competition I didn’t really think that much of it. I gave it a go not expecting to hear back as it’s ‘Battle of the Bands’, and I’m not a band, so it did catch me by surprise when I all of a sudden got an email saying I’d made it through! It’s pretty mad to be honest. Obviously with me being a rapper competing against two guitar-based bands, I’ll be bringing a different vibe to the competition, and I hope that will work to my advantage. I’ve just been doing my regular thing leading up to the finals – I’ve been making music seriously for about four years now, and I’d say another eight before that just doing bits of pieces of lyrics and poetry, and I’ve got a tight group I work with who produces beats for me, although I’m looking at trying to do that myself. 

 

Fire Fences:  

We’re feeling excited about tonight, and even if we don’t make it to the top this is just another exciting thing to add onto the list of amazing stuff we’ve had happen to us. A few years back, we were lucky enough to record over in the States and play a sold out show at The Viper Room in LA. At the time we were under 21 and not old enough to drink or even be inside the venue, so we were literally stood outside on the sidewalk with our instruments until someone came and told us it was time to play. We set up, and when the curtains opened it was absolutely packed. It was incredible, and we feel like we’ve learnt a lot from that experience. We really love playing live, and we feel like that is our strength. We will try to treat tonight just as any other gig; go on, play, and have fun. It’s nice to be part of a final where all the bands are so different and great in their own way. The feedback we got after entering the competition was so great as well. You could tell that they had really taken their time to actually listen to and almost analyse our music, which made us feel even better about making it through as we were recognised for exactly what we were. 

 


Eventually it’s time for dress rehearsals and a quick run through of everything that’s about to happen. Abbie McCarthy from BBC Radio 1 is the host for the evening and starts out interviewing the judges which includes Orange’s European A&R rep Daniel Darby. A video of each band that was used during the public votes is showed before their performance, and they all get two songs each before they’re over in the hot seat with Abbie to share their thoughts on their performance and the competition. Shortly after, family and friends start to arrive adding some extra tension and excitement to it all, and the countdown till we go live begins. 

6pm sharp it all kicks off, and first out is Nuns of the Tundra, the heaviest act of the night. They start out with the bass-based ‘Dead in the Desert’, followed by ‘Minds’s Eye’ which they’ve re-worked for the evening and given a dramatic ending. Second man out is EL-Emcee who appears to be the natural entertainer, interacting with the camera and audience while showing off his incredible songwriting skills. Last but not least, is Welsh Fire Fences, who by the looks of it are probably the youngest of the lot. They start off loud and proud then mellows it down for the second song, both described as ‘anthems’ by Abbie McCarthy.

With all acts being so good at what they do, they judges are left with a tough decision to make. Minutes which must feel like months for the contestants pass by, and they can finally announce that this year’s winner of Firestone Battle of the Bands is Fire Fences!

While basking in the new found glory of their victory, we had a brief chat with the 2 runners up, Nuns of the Tundra who still were high in spirits and ready to take on some new recording, and EL-Emcee, who said he’ll keep writing and get producing, and perform wherever and whenever he can. When we finally managed to get a little piece of Fire Fences who were the centre of everyone’s attention, they couldn’t be happier about the outcome and head to the studio to record new music. We’ll be staying in touch with the winners, so watch this space for updates to see where they venture off to next. 

This upcoming Thursday, 14th December, sees the final of 2017’s Firestone Battle of the Bands. The public votes have closed, and the top three that made it to the final are Welsh four-piece Fire Fences, London-based rapper EL-Emcee and Malvern’s Nuns of the Tundra. One of the things we’re very excited about this year is that we’ve managed to cover a lot of ground and sound with this year’s bands and artist, from indie and rock ’n’ roll to hip hop and rap.

Fire Fences:

Fire Fences, who can be compared to the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Panic! At The Disco and Fall Out Boy have had some incredible things happen to them during their four years as a band, from being invited out to LA in 2015 to record and play a sold out show at the legendary Viper Room, to being picked as one of the top ten UK unsigned bands in 2017 by Rising Sounds. This allowed them to record their single ‘Weather’ which has been chosen to be featured in the new NASCAR Heat II Video Game. The guys have made it clear that they’re in the music game for the thrill of it, and that the successes the band have seen so far have only been an added bonus. If they don’t make it in the end? Well, they’ll still be going at it at 60, as long as they’re still enjoying it.

EL-Emcee:

EL-Emcee is the only solo artist that’s made it to this year’s final, and also the only hip hop act in the top three. The Ipswich and London-based rapper, who’s real name is Lloyd Millwood, has been making tracks and beats under the alias EL-Emcee for years now, and records everything at home in his bedroom. For EL-Emcee, hip hop has become a way to express feelings, opinions and thoughts, and he’s already got hundreds of tracks under his belt. He is always still striving to learn, and adapt better to his soul, and will always find a way to stand out among the competition.

“Spreading Mind, Heart, Soul, to the world. Let our voices serve our purpose. Whether we become Pacs or Killer Mikes.”
-EL-Emcee

Nuns of the Tundra:

“Dirty desert rock from the unlikely tranquil town of Malvern. Nuns will make it their holy mission to get you moving.”
– From Nuns of the Tundra’s Soundcloud

Nuns of the Tundra will be the heaviest band on the bill for this year’s Firestone Battle of the Bands final, floating somewhere between Royal Blood and Queens of the Stone Age with their alternative indie psychedelic rock. Nuns of the Tundra have used their social media and SoundCloud to build up a following and reach new audiences, and love seeing people’s faces light up in excitement at gigs and shows.


As you can see, this diversity’s key, and it’ll be extra hard to pick a winner this year as all of the finalists are so good in their own field. The Birmingham final will be live streamed on Firestone’s Facebook, so tune in there from just before 6pm Thursday night to cheer your favourite to the top!