This week, the Beggar’s Best won a spot in our fourth live showdown, scheduled for May 9 at the Mohawk Place. They join Seen It All, who collected the most votes on our Web site last week.

Congratulations to Round 4 Week 2 Winners: The Beggar's Best

By next week, one of the two acts to your right will have won the chance to join them down at the ’Hawk. Whoever wins there will join TypeRelevant, Peanut Brittle Satellite, and Fashion Expo 1990 in the live Grand Finale at the Tralf on May 15.

This week, you, as a local music fan, check out the music of Falling Into Place and Alex Berkley, then vote for your favorite.

Remember that our IT guy is very savvy, and he’ll be monitoring the votes more closely than an election lawyer in Ohio. Vote once. Don’t try to stuff the ballot. If you’re caught cheating, you can be disqualified. And there’s nowhere to appeal our decision.

Also, musicians, there’s still time to enter BOOM. Only two more acts will be featured on these pages before the big Grand Finale. Visit the registration page to find out how to enter. JUST MAKE SURE YOU SEND US ALL THREE THINGS: SONG, PHOTO & QUESTIONNAIRE. Meatloaf tells us that two out of three ain’t bad, but I’m telling you that two out of three won’t do! Because we can’t include you in our contest without all the required materials.

The rewards for the winners are great. They will receive a recording package from Audio Magic, and 100 CDs of that recording from ESP CD & DVD Manufacturing. The four winners of our live quarterfinals will face off in our Grand Finale in May. The winner that night will win a slot on WBFO’s Wednesday night concerts live from Allen Hall, a video produced by Artvoice, and a nice cash prize as well. Special thanks to our friends at Guitar Center.

We’re happy to present this contest with the help of our great sponsors: Nietzsche’s, Mohawk Place, ESP, WBFO and Audio Magic... They all play a vital role in making our town a hotspot of original music. But we can’t make msic without u. Visit Artvoice.com and vote. And may the best band win.

Voting has ended for these bands!
Visit the BOOM site for current contestants

Alex Berkley You need to have the Adobe Flash Player installed to listen. Download it for free here. Listen to Song of the Morning by Alex Berkley When/where did the band form? I’ve been writing and performing since 2002. I wrote most of my songs in Pittsburgh and Fredonia, but I mostly perform them in Buffalo. You might like us if you like: Elliot Smith, Nick Drake, Bob Dylan, Wilco, Pavement, Sun Kil Moon, Sufjan Stevens, Julie Doiron, Crosby Stills and Nash. Why you should win the Artvoice.com Online Battle of Original Music: If you like melody, harmony, lyricism, wit, wisdom, rock’n’roll (and who doesn’t?), then I’m your man. I’ve put everything into my songs. I think I can let them speak for themselves. Website: www.myspace.com/berkley84

Falling Into Place You need to have the Adobe Flash Player installed to listen. Download it for free here. Listen to Get Me Out by Falling Into Place When/where did the band form? 2003 new years day in a tiny room with an acoustic guitar, fun heart felt lyrics and some rough versions of some of our original songs that can sometimes still be heard at our shows today. You might like us if you like: Social Distortion, Rancid, Blink 182, Green Day, Nirvana, and anything hip hop pop punk grunge that makes you wanna dance and rip your clothes off. Why you should win the Artvoice.com Online Battle of Original Music: We have dedicated our lives to this band. The train keeps rolling and we can’t stop and won’t stop. We started this band 6 years ago mainly for ourselves but the people we have touched with our music is countless. If it’s studio recordings or live shows we try and write music that will live forever. Website: www.fallingintoplaceband.com

Visit the BOOM page for more