Words By Joe Vickrey
Photos By Syd White
I have been recovering from the flu I had since Thanksgiving, so my usual enthusiasm for Battle of the Bands couldn’t be as readily found earlier in the week. I actually didn’t think I’d be well enough to go at all, so the fact that I’ve sprung back to life in the last couple of days couldn’t have been more perfectly timed.
My last BOTB experience was a magical evening that introduced me to The Penny Candies and Spencer Sanders. Both of which have albums I reviewed because I enjoyed their performances so much. Blissfully unfamiliar with tonight’s bands, I came eager for more wonderful surprises in store.
Wonderbad
Originally from Washington, Wonderbad are all Provo transplants who wore their influences on their sleeves. Kicking off the night with a bang, the singer of Wonderbad was definitely the highlight of the group for me. If I had my eyes closed, I could’ve sworn it was Kurt Cobain – and as a fellow Pacific Northwesterner – I do not say that lightly. Whether intentional or not, the bassist’s harmonies even echoed that of a young Dave Grohl. Nirvana vibes for sure with touches of Pavement and maybe even Sonic Youth at moments.
The band is thoroughbred grunge, and it was a welcome flavor to a good chunk of the crowd. It took a few songs for the band to warm into a great stage presence, but they got there, and they had what I would deem a great amount of crowd involvement for grunge. The band’s last song was by far my favorite. It felt mesmerizing and there were more elements of ambiance than in any of their other songs. I would love to hear more of this direction from the group personally. They killed the dynamic swings and textural elements when they had them, but they generally swung more towards the dual-rhythm guitar vibes.
KŌMAS
From the moment they took the stage, KŌMAS commanded it. Their singer bounced off the crowd and brought a high energy. It was great to see the whole band loving the limelight as well. They looked loose and sounded tight throughout. The second song of the night had this cool guitar / bass riff that had the whole crowd grooving. Among fellow judges, that riff was also a highlight.
Their singer, Mitchell Kirkham, delivered a great performance, but I felt like his vocals were too clean and over-enunciated for me. I’d say the same thing about Cheap Trick, but they’ve made millions of dollars with it, so what do what I know? Again, powerhouse of a frontman, but I personally would enjoy the songs more with a more raw, legato vocal approach throughout. Regardless of my opinions, they put on a fantastic performance that kept the crowd bobbing and wooing throughout. Their ability to play together as a group was great, and I have a feeling we’ll be seeing more KŌMAS in the future of Provo.
The Filibusters
Anyone who has heard The Filibusters probably says the same thing first: Their are not words to express how good their singer is. Ten out of ten vocals. Hannah makes American Idol sound like a middle school talent show. Offense intended to all middle schoolers.
I couldn’t decide if the band or the crowd was having more fun. Everyone looked like they were having the time of their lives. The band was completely in sync and all the instruments supported the melody, which is exactly what they should be doing on a pop song. Especially with a vocalist of this caliber. With that in mind, I felt that their music was overall a bit safe. Adding things like unique chord progressions, counter melodies, riffs, or textural elements throughout would be exciting to hear in their future songs. Hannah also seemed great on keys and guitar, which she played on a number of songs, and that could provide an opportunity to open up the songs to more melodic instrumentations. Doubling rhythm guitars is just a pet peeve of mine! Either way, the songs are objectively fun and the performance was solid.
Breakfast Biscuit
Breakfast Biscuit was the only band of the night to start their set with a quiet intro. Their opener quickly built into a fantastic tune that had the whole crowd swaying. In the categories of dynamics, textures, and funny stage banter, Breakfast Biscuit won the night for me. While my honest first thought was “Does any band really need three guitars?” Breakfast Biscuit absolutely does. Having two excellent slide guitars in one band was not in my BOTB Bingo Card… but falling in love with a Provocore band was (it’s them).
As a guitar obsessed nerd, I HAVE to reiterate how much Breakfast Biscuit’s guitar work blew me away. One of the guitarists, Fred, had this mondo ear for lead voicing. The band’s use of effects was tasteful and intentional, and I never felt like the guitar trio was too much. While groove is the group’s forte, I would have loved to hear a faster song in the mix. They got the crowd to mosh on the last song, so I refuse to be told I’m wrong on this. Kick up the dust, lads!
Conclusion
Before anyone gets too fired up in the comments, I just want to say that all four of these bands were wonderful and all of my remarks are in the nitpicking territory. I genuinely didn’t know who would win. All four bands had particular strengths, and all four are deserving to move on to the finals. Even between the judges there didn’t seem to be a clear consensus.
The moment finally came. The highest scores of the week and the crowd bonus tallied up to a difference in just one point between the top two bands of the night. Hearts raced, thighs were drum rolled on, and the winner was announced. Breakfast Biscuit won night 3!
Again, I had no idea what to expect for the final outcome, but it was a fantastic show and I’m excited to see how the rest of the week plays out after I call in for work tomorrow. Don’t rat on me, and happy rocking!
You can catch Breakfast Biscuit at finals this Saturday! Velour’s Winter 2025 Battle of the Bands Night 4 is tonight, featuring Calling Card, American Bird, Poolhouse, and DOGPAW. Doors open at 7:30 PM.
While you’re waiting for the show to start, check out “rodgers bird emporium” by Breakfast Biscuit below and be sure to follow the Night 3 winners on Instagram!