The Bergy’s epic Battle of the Bands returns to Melbourne this month
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01.05.2025

The Bergy’s epic Battle of the Bands returns to Melbourne this month

Battle of the Bands
Words by Staff Writer

The Bergy Bandroom and this humble rag present an epic Battle of the Bands 2025.

Beat Magazine and the Bergy Bandroom’s Battle of the Bands competition returns for its second year in 2025.

Following last year’s successful inaugural event, the competition will expand to showcase 25 emerging acts across five heats, with winners progressing to the grand final in October.

Battle of the Bands 2025

  • Where: Bergy Bandroom, Brunswick
  • When: Monthly heats from May to September, Grand Final on 15 October 2025
  • Heat one features Alisha.K, Hannah & the Heartstrings, FRANKY, The Rartel, and Skiptons.

Check out our gig guide, our stage guide, our festival guide, our live music venue guide and our nightclub guide. Follow us on Instagram here.

Battle of the Bands 2025 will kick off with the first heat on 14 May, followed by additional heats on 11 June, 16 July, 13 August, and 17 September. Winners from each heat will secure a place in the grand final scheduled for 15 October.

The competition offers substantial prizes for participants, with heat winners receiving $1,000 each. The overall champion will take home a comprehensive prize package valued at over $4,000, including a full day at The Aviary Recording Studio with engineer Zachary Camm, a print and online feature in this mag(!), $500 worth of on-air advertising via PBS Radio, and a performance slot at the 2026 Sydney Road Festival.

Additionally, the winner will receive access to the Catalyst Artist Development Course plus a two-hour strategy intensive with Fiske management. The runner-up won’t leave empty-handed either, scoring a one-hour strategy and planning consultation valued at $500 plus a $100 bar tab at the Bergy Bandroom.

A panel of three industry professionals will judge the competition: Chloe Harrison, performer and Senior Music Lecturer at JMC Academy; Brooke Kimberley, performer and PBS Radio DJ; and Zachary Camm, sound engineer at Aviary Studios.

The event organisers have secured significant support from local music industry partners, with sponsors including Fireball, PBS Radio, The Aviary Recording Studio, Fellr Seltzers, Heaps Normal, and Fiske Artist Management.

Battle of the Bands aims to create not only a competitive platform but also a supportive environment for emerging musicians to showcase their talents. Last year’s event helped launch several acts into the local music scene, with organisers hoping to build on that success.

Tickets for the first heat are already available through Oztix, with subsequent heat tickets to be released throughout the year.

To grab tickets to heat one, head here.