On Fri., July 13, The Green Scene won the midwestern finals of the Jim Beam Rock Band Search at Chicago's Hard Rock Cafe, earning the chance to play at national finals in Denver in August.
The funky rockers faced three other regional bands, each of which played a 15-minute set of original music in front of a live audience and a judging panel that included music executives and journalists.
The Green Scene now gets an all-expenses-paid trip to battle the winners from the Northeast, Northwest, Southeast and Southwest regional competitions in the Jim Beam Rock Band Search national finals event at the Gothic Theatre in Denver on Fri., Aug. 24.
The Green Scene, from Eagle, Wis., combine funk, jazz and hip-hop to create a unique sound that can best be described as a little G Love, a little Jamiroquai.
Their funky guitar work translates to an energetic live show, but the band has also racked up studio time with its most recent CD, "Random Acts," produced at Milwaukee's Walls Have Ears studio last year. The band also has two other albums, "High" (1996) and "don't 4 get 2 get d0wn" (1998).
The young trio has been jamming since 1995. Singer/songwriter and guitarist Ethan Keller has led The Green Scene to more than 250 gigs in Milwaukee and around the country.
At the national finals, The Green Scene and other regional winners play before a judging panel of music and recording industry executives, in hopes of taking home the grand prize:
- A five-market tour aboard the Jim Beam tour bus
- A $2,000 equipment budget
- A limited-edition Jim Beam customized guitar from Gibson
- Customized band T-shirts for use on the tour
The competition is part of B.E.A.M. (Benefiting Emerging Artists in Music), a program funded by Jim Beam Bourbon that provides financial assistance and other resources for emerging musicians. The B.E.A.M. program offers $100,000 annually in grants to unsigned musicians, as well as opportunities through the Jim Beam Country Band Search. In addition, music fans are discovering some of the best emerging national and local talent in Jim Beam Back Room Sessions around the country. Log onto www.jimbeam.com for information about any of the Jim Beam music programs.
Log onto www.g-scene.com for information about The Green Scene.
