WMGK proves every time that Southeastern Pennsylvania's Got Talent

My ears were ringing judging this year's 102.9 WMGK House Band Competition. However they were also treated to some high quality live bands in the quest to see who gets selected to represent Philadelphia's classic rock radio station during major events such as the Big Bad Bonfire, Brew Blast and opening for classic rock acts during their annual summer concert. The official house band also gets the coveted prizes of $1,000 of new gear and two days of recording studio time.
So far, advancing to the finals are Taggart, Green Machine, and a band I personally got to witness rise to the cream of the crop, Kategory 5 (Obviously spelling doesn't count).
It's a challenge coming up with a score for vocals, stage presence, crowd reaction (Full disclosure: stupidly over the top fans hurt your score!), musicianship and adherence to/understanding of MGK's playlist.
Each band must play the same assigned song by MGK. That night's was "Desire" by U2. Since I was in a cover band for 6 and a half years, and that was one of our go-to tunes, I paid close attention to each band's reading. I was impressed that all four showed their attention to detail by having a harmonica for the solos at the end.

Party Hat was quite fun, with a set that featured "Back in Black" (AC/DC), a well-executed "Jump" (Van Halen), an inspired version of The Doors' "Break on Through" with the Jim Morrison spoken word "Dead Cats, Dead Rats" -- which unfortunately was spoiled by a drum hardware malfunction --and a song rarely done anywhere -- "One Thing Leads to Another" by The Fixx. They stood out because of their keyboards-forward approach. Would like to know they sequenced The Who's "Baba O'Riley!"

For the record, I LOVED AM Radio. I want their clothes! What ultimately hurt their chances was they leaned classic pop, rather than classic rock.

Before you send hate mail, it's because that I know the difference that MGK keeps asking me to judge. I was in the radio biz 15 years; I know what I'm talking about.

Chester County's Exit Strategy had the unenviable task of following Kategory 5. Here's their rendition of .38 Special's "Hold on Loosely."

My favorite part of their set was a spirited performance of Led Zeppelin's "Black Dog."
Upcoming semi-final rounds are taking place Aug. 11 at Havana in New Hope, and Aug. 18 at Chickies and Pete's near the sports complex in South Philly. The finals are scheduled for Parx Casino the 25th. 8 p.m. is the start time, 7:30 for the finals.