For the County Grind review of the first of the four battles, click here.
Nine local bands competed in the local wing of the Hard Rock Rising competition. Winners from three battles ended up head to head last Thursday, and only one band won. It was, unsurprising to many, Community Property.
Named Best of Live Band by New Times Broward-Palm Beach in 2010, the band's frontman, Lucien Sawyer, says the group has gone undefeated in every South Florida battle of the band in which it's participated. So it isn't a huge break from the norm that it's now up against bands that won Hard Rock Rising in their communities all over the world. The prize is great: to play at London's Hyde Park with the Boss himself, Bruce Springsteen.
Proud to be "Sunrise boys," Community Property has been rocking in Broward for six years now. Bass player Clarence Jay was actually the lead singer of a classic area punk band called Hash Browns. "We've been going solid for the last three, three and a half years down here in South Florida, trying to make a name for ourselves," says Sawyer. "Bringing rock 'n' roll to the forefront of the sound South Florida has to deliver, especially with really heavy soulful roots."
Sawyer writes all the lyrics, and the band comes up with melodies. He just freestyles over them. "It just takes on a life of its own," he says of the process.
Their competitors last week were smooth rockers Blue Sky Drive and metalheads Beer, Guts, and Glory, who, Sawyer notes, are "all about beer, guts, and glory." He says of the bands, "Their performances were great. They all brought out their fans. A lot of energy onstage. I was a little worried about Beer, Guts, and Glory. They performed after us." Blue Sky Drive, he pointed out, they're just a totally different vibe.
Sawyer was confident, though, in their performance. He says, "We go balls to the wall every time. Whether it's ten people or a hundred people, we're going to rock your face."
We'll keep you updated on how to vote for these local rockers and get them to the U.K. Keep your ears peeled; they'll be dropping a self-titled album this summer.
Community Property performs at Green Room, 109 SW Second Ave., Fort Lauderdale, tonight, March 28, at 10 with Protoman.
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