Young rock musicians show hunger to win

Lions Eat Rhino Poachers may have been a headline from earlier this year, but it’s also the name of a bunch of budding rock stars.

The musicians from Nelson Intermediate School won the Rockshop BandQuest regional final in Nelson on Friday night at the Theatre Royal after belting out tunes against nine other bands.

The band collected $400 credit from the Rockshop for their school, and will go into the online national final, with the results announced on September 20.

Harvey and the Boppers, from St Joseph’s School, placed second, while Shots Fired, from Broadgreen Intermediate School, were third.

The national event is in its eighth year and is a talent feeder for Smokefreerockquest, encouraging intermediate and primary school pupils to take the stage and showcase their musical abilities.

Event organiser Matt Ealand said the performances from musicians in this age group mixed sophistication with a lack of self-consciousness.

‘‘They’ve been watching TV and YouTube. They’re aware of what established musicians are doing, and they want to emulate them.

‘‘Rockshop Bandquest is a confidence builder that lifts their game musically, and they tend to take that with them to high school, with proven benefits socially and academically,’’ he said.

More than 215 bands entered nationally, performing in events during August and September.