Raglan band Hand Me Downs to compete in York St Band Experiments 2010

Local Raglan band Hand me downs have made it through to the heats of the York St Band Experiments competition in Hamilton and are urging local music supporters to come and cheer for them at the Flow Bar, 266 Victoria Street, Hamilton on Thursday 9th October for an 8pm start. They will be competing against four other Waikato bands for the coveted prize of a day’s recording at York St Studios.
The Band Experiments competition has been running since 1999 and has a great reputation for kick starting the careers of NZ artists such as Cornerstone Roots, Katchafire and The Datsuns. Last year saw Knights of the Dub Table take first place and they have since gone from strength-to-strength. Hamilton Live Music Trust took over the staging of the event last year and their aims are to promote and develop Hamilton’s music community. The Band Experiments has attracted media attention both locally and nationally thanks to York St Studios, and as a result they received over forty entries from Waikato bands for this year’s competition. There are serious prizes to be enjoyed by the winner including a day’s recording in York St’s prestigious studio and a music video worth $5000.
It’s by no surprise that Hand me downs were selected for the heats. Since they formed in January of this year, they have enjoyed a rollercoaster ride of success. July saw their debut performance at a packed out Vinnie’s which was well received and they recently acquired a new band member from Raglan, Simon Buxton (drums). The line up now includes Lucy Cioffi (lyrics/vocals/guitar) Dougal Greer (guitar/banjo) Dion Chappell (guitar) Reg Valente (double bass) Simon Buxton (drums) and Hamilton guest musician Mary Axon (violin). Lucy is currently managing the band and has been busy promoting their three track demo which was recorded by local sound engineers Tom McCormick and Nic Tribe. She is also managing their website which has received over 2200 hits since being active in March of this year and has been applying to various funding bodies. Hand me downs now have the backing of Creative Communities NZ and were awarded funding from Waikato District Council and Raglan Old School Arts Centre to help finance the recording of a five track EP. Their demo track Karioi was shortlisted in the top 50 for New Recording Artist funding from NZ on Air which received over 204 applications.
If you would like to come and support Hand me downs at the Flow Bar contact Lucy on 0226349307 or email her at pleasehandmedown@yahoo.co.nz. She is hoping to arrange a minibus to travel from Raglan to Hamilton and if this is something you can help with please contact her. You can listen to Karioi on Tractor FM 88.2 Raglan which features on their playlist and online at www.myspace.com/pleasehandmedown