Here’s the idea: 12 local bands. 12 songs. 1 CD of Philadelphia music. After voting is finished, the top 12 bands will be featured on a compilation CD to be distributed all over Philadelphia! We’ll also take the top 6 bands to battle it out at the Philly Sound Clash at World Cafe Live on February 21st, 2008. The best band wins the Grand Prize! So, for all of you non-musician types, this is where you come in. Rock out to Philly’s best local music, have some fun and enjoy the show.

Update: PhillySoundClash Round One Winners!

For the past month, local bands and fans have been duking it out on the second annual PhillySoundClash, PhillyCarShare’s battle of the bands competition where literally thousands of dollars’ worth of dough, gear and services are up for grabs. Well, the preliminary voting rounds are now over, and we’re happy to announce two tiers of winners. Of the over 85 bands who entered, the following 12 will appear on the PhillySoundClash CD, distributed in all PhillyCarShare cars:

Agent Moosehead · East Hundred · GANG · Gemini Wolf · Jamie Harrison · The Hustle ·
Mike Kotulka · The Last Tempest · The Lopez · The Shadow Self · Spanish Blue · Zasz

But wait, there’s more. Of those 12, the following six will be performing at the PhillySoundClash at The World Café Live on February 21st:

Agent Moosehead · East Hundred · GANG · Gemini Wolf · The Hustle · Mike Kotulka

Come February 21st, these six will compete before an audience and a panel of judges for the grand prize. Congrats to everyone who made it this far, and thanks to all the bands who entered, all of whom you can check out here. Good luck!

GRAND Prize Packages:

RUNNER-UP Prize Package

Band Submissions:

DO YOU QUALIFY?
First, you have to be local artist in the greater metropolitan Philadelphia area and not signed onto a major label or an affiliate of a major label.
Second, you must have enough material to perform a 45 minute set.
Third, you must have three quality recordings to demo your band (if chosen, the exact track will be compiled to the compilation CD, so they must be decent recordings, my friends!), a written bio, and some pics for your profile.

It’s that simple! All genres are welcome!!!

Judging

Main Judges: We are still considering various radio personalities, producers/engineers, A&R Reps, local booking/promotional agencies… You get the idea.
PhillyCarShare reserves the right to disqualify artists. Grounds for disqualification include but are not limited to: Not falling into PhillyCarShare’s definition of an “unsigned” act, any attempts to manipulate online voting.
Compilation songs will be based 100% on online voting results.
Phase 3 of Philly Sound Clash will feature the 6 highest rated bands and the winners will be chosen based on crowd response, performance, musicianship, essence, professionalism and star quality.

The Philly Sound Clash Showcase was born from the desire to support local Philly artists. This showcase will provide a valuable opportunity for local musicians here in Philadelphia. PhillyCarShare is a non-profit company that seeks to maximize the economic, environmental, and social benefits of reduced automobile dependence in the Philadelphia region through community-based car sharing.

Not all submittals will make it through the Phase 1 screening process. In Phase 2 (pre event online voting contest), winning bands will be based 100% on the number of votes a band receives. PhillyCarShare reserves the right to disqualify acts at their discretion and bleep out profanity for the CD (don’t worry, we know it’s your art, stay creative, let us worry). Grounds for disqualification include but are not limited to: Not falling into PhillyCarShare’s definition of an “unsigned” act and any attempts to manipulate voting.