The Cayman Music and Entertainment Association is preparing to stage the Battle of the Bands on 26 December at Pedro St. James.

Boxing Day was traditionally the day the nationally, popular kitchen dance known as the Caymanian rendition of the Garden Party was held. In the 1970s and 1980s, the date featured what many Caymanians will remember as a local production held at the original Cinema, featuring live music by a variety of local performers.

According to CMEA President Jean Eric Smith, “The evolution of the local music industry is an off shoot of this celebratory time in Cayman’s history and one that the Islands should continue to celebrate and honour by using the day to exhibit what the Cayman Islands now have to offer from a musical perspective. Fortunately, Pedro Castle is a part of that history, which is another reason it seems fitting to have the Battle of the Bands there.”

The cut off date is 19 December and individuals can enter by sending an e-mail to cmeainfo@gmail.com

The Battle of the Bands was first created by the CMEA just before the turn of the century and was discontinued after a five-year run. The concept was revived by the Department of Tourism to determine which local bands would be chosen to participate in the now defunct Cayman Jazz Fest.

“It has now become incumbent on the CMEA to once again stage the Battle of the Bands, where it is envisioned that such an event will determine which local band and DJ will compete for the title of Band and DJ of the Year. This is in addition to a bevy of prizes that have been organised for the winners and runner-up,” said CMEA President Jean-Eric Smith.

The winners of the Battle of the Bands will receive an advance contract with Pirates Week for next year’s national festival where they will be featured as the opening act for regional artists who traditionally headline the event. Additionally, they will travel to Cuba, courtesy of the Ministry of Tourism, to represent the Cayman Islands at the annual Cubadisco, which takes place in Havana in May 2012.

The runners-up will also receive an advance contract with Batabano, as well as an all expense paid trip to Fiesta Del Caribe held in Santiago, Cuba to represent the Cayman Islands courtesy of the Ministry of Tourism.

According to Smith, the winners will be decided online, resulting in the top three DJs being selected to perform at Pedro Castle on Boxing Day, as well as receiving an advance contract with Pirates Week and Batabano to perform at the 2012 National Festival and National Carnival in Cayman Brac and Little Cayman. All expenses associated with this travel will be included.

The Band of The Year and The DJ of The Year both will be given the contract to perform at the confirmed John Legend concert to be held in early 2012. The date will be announced later.

“The Battle of the Bands will also be the precursor to our monthly cabaret/variety show, which will feature a host of local talent exhibiting their acts, whether it be comics, dancers musicians. This cabaret series will take place yearly on dates to be announced,” explained the president.

He said the Cayman Islands has to operate as a community with the tourism product, as “anything that is done with out inclusion of all stakeholders is almost always doomed to suffer not being inclusive of all aspects of the product. We have got to get back to integration, not just among ourselves but with the tourists, as it used to be in the days of Galleon Beach, where people from the Cayman Islands would rub shoulders with the visitors and that was how we cultivated one of the strongest tourism products in the region; through inclusion.”

The CMEA president added that with the resurgence of local kitchen dance music and with the advent of bands like Swanky, it has become evident that the culture of our Islands is still thriving and it needs to be fostered in order to be ushered into the modern era. “We need this for the scene here and to help us to understand where we are at, where we are coming from and where we need to go.”

The Battle of the Bands is also expected to serve as the catalyst for Pirates Week, which the president said would mean that one of our local bands would not only be featured but might also, “quite appropriately be featured in the Pirate’s Week Brochure, which did not happen this year.”

The Battle of the Bands event begins at 4pm on Boxing day and goes on until 11pm. Drink specials will be offered between 4pm and 6pm.

“It has now become incumbent on the CMEA to once again stage the Battle of the Bands, where it is envisioned that such an event will determine which local band and DJ will compete for the title of Band and DJ of the Year. This is in addition to a bevy of prizes that have been organised for the winners and runner-up.” Jean-Eric Smith