Local bands will duke it out at Veishea’s Battle of the Bands for a chance to play at Live @ VEISHEA.

According to Veishea’s Web site, 15 bands will compete Friday on Central Campus to play during the musical festival Saturday.

Bands that will perform include All But Screaming, Breaking Even, The Broken, The Lone Strangers, Saint Radar and many more. Despite a wide variety of bands, they all are said to put on a good show.

“Our stage performance has always been seen as a very energetic show – a lot of big movement,” said David Lunsford of All But Screaming. “That’s probably our strength – a very visual, passionate show.”

All But Screaming credits their high-energy show to their three-part harmonies, along with other qualities. The band has toured all over the U.S. and is currently touring the Midwest. John Misener, guitarist of All But Screaming, said he enjoys touring, especially in the major cities in the Midwest, such as Minneapolis and Chicago.

“I like touring; you get to see if the rest of the world likes you instead of just your home town,” Misener said. “We’ve been getting good responses every place we play.”

Another band that will compete is Saint Radar, which can’t be described as a regular rock ‘n’ roll group, said band member Ben Shin.

“I think we make rock ‘n’ roll, but in the spirit of rock ‘n’ roll, kind of like a throwback to the older rock ‘n’ roll,” Shin said.

However, Shin said some of Saint Radar’s members are concerned with their stage performance.

“That’s something I’m somewhat concerned with. There’s an amount of showmanship required and we’re trying to get that under our belt,” Shin said. “There were some 40 bands playing and we were the definite 10th band playing, so they like something musically out of all 10 of us.”

Nathaniel Johansen, senior in agricultural business and Veishea entertainment co-chairman, said he is very pleased with Veishea’s committee and the talent line-up for the Battle of the Bands.

“My committee has worked very hard at selecting such great contestants this year. We’re going to have a WildCard event, which is something new,” Johansen said.

He said there are 10 bands that are already selected and five will be selected from the WildCard Playoffs.

One of the bands in the WildCard Playoffs is Jade Lea, which has been together for about six months.

“We do very well in terms of drawing them into the music – making it an experience rather than just music,” said Keith Rollins of Jade Lea.

Jade Lea will be one of the smaller bands performing, with only three band members.

Another local band, Two Piece Satisfaction, is also involved with the WildCard Playoffs.

“Since we haven’t been around for very long, we’re just looking for any gig we can get,” said Nick Redmond, a member of Two Piece Satisfaction. “I’m happy to play the show at the M-Shop, and if people like us then we get another [show].”

Some band members in the WildCard Playoffs, however, aren’t too thrilled about the setup, such as Dan Hopper, drummer for Breaking Even.

“I don’t know what to think about it,” Hopper said. “We played three years ago and we were in the final round – they didn’t have the WildCard back then. I think a couple of us actually took it as a slap in the face because we feel like we’re pretty well-established. That’s just my opinion.”

The WildCard selections will take place Tuesday through Thursday at the Maintenance Shop of the Memorial Union.

To learn more about Battle of the Bands, go to www.veishea.iastate.edu.