Newport band picked for musical showcase

After months of seeing bands play and sifting through hundreds of applications, the 35 top bands in Orange County are preparing to take the stage for a seven-week music showcase.

Make Moon, a Newport Beach band, was asked to represent the county in the ninth annual OC Music Awards, and compete against Orange County’s top bands or solo artists, including seven from Costa Mesa.

“We just felt really honored that someone considered us for nomination,” said Make Moon guitarist Drew Morgan.

The OC Music Awards is a showcase of the top bands in the county and offers a chance for them to compete for honors and awards. The event is designed to give local bands exposure and opportunities. The event is hyper local, but it gives bands recognition both in and outside of the county, said OC Music Awards Director Ashley Eckenweiler.

Make Moon will perform Tuesday, the first night of the showcase, at Detroit Bar in Costa Mesa. The now six-member band started out smaller as Dolphin City in 2007 and evolved into Make Moon. While the band changed with the new name, the band wanted to keep some of their old selves — the name Make Moon is a song title from Dolphin City.

The experimental rock, or art rock, band has performed all over but is excited to have the opportunity to play with local friends, Morgan said. The other cool thing about the showcase is exactly what it is trying to do — bring in new people. The showcase will hopefully draw in people on the peripheral of the music scene, Morgan said.

“We’re just happy to be able to perform in a venue that will hopefully attract new people,” he said.

Musicians are always asking OC Music Awards Producer Luke Allen about what is the next step in the business. Allen owns a rehearsal studio and said he usually tells them to look to Los Angeles, but Orange County’s northern neighbor is having less and less of an impact on the industry, he said.

Allen got involved in the awards last year to help bring awareness to the Orange County music scene and give local artists more opportunities. He said he wants the event to create more momentum in the music scene and give artists a chance to network, connect and play shows together.

“We try to make it diverse, and we try to find as much new music as we can,” Allen said.

The bands will play a half dozen shows throughout Orange County during the showcase series, competing for a chance to perform at the awards show March 6 at the Grove of Anaheim.

The shows are free and are at different venues.

Some will take place at bars, others at more family-friendly locations.

While the bars limit who can participate, Allen said the showcase is really for everyone.

“I think anyone that is a music fan can come out and enjoy a night of music,” he said.

Make Moon’s Tuesday performance at Detroit Bar is set for 7:30 p.m.

For a list of the band’s upcoming shows, go to its MySpace page at www.myspace.com/makemoon. For a full list of artists performing during the showcase, go to www.ocmusicawards.com.

If You Go

What: The OC Music Awards Showcase Series

Cost: Free

Tuesday: 7:30 p.m. at Detroit Bar in Costa Mesa. 21 and older

Jan. 12: 7:30 p.m. at the District Tustin Legacy in Tustin

Jan. 19: 7:30 p.m. at the Continental Room in Fullerton. 21 and older

Jan. 26: 7 p.m. at the Gypsy Den in Santa Ana

Feb. 2: 7 p.m. at Chain Reaction in Anaheim

Feb. 9: 7:30 p.m. at OC Tavern in San Clemente. 21 and older

Feb. 16: 7:30 p.m. at the Gypsy Lounge in Lake Forest. 21 and older