Texas Bands Can Compete to Perform at 2024 Wacken Open Air Fest

Every band has a dream of performing for huge crowds; certainly any band who has performed at the Wacken Open Air Festival held in Germany. Since 2005, it has become of the biggest gatherings of metalheads all over the world. Since 2017, the Metal Battle competition has given smaller bands a chance to PLAY the festival.

This means that if you have a band, you have a chance to play BUT...there's a couple of things you need to know.

How do bands sign up for the 2024 Wacken Open Air Battle of the Bands?

On Metal Battle's website, there's a page for bands to select which country they're representing. If you select the American flag, it takes you to a form to sign out where you enter your band's name, a link to your band's music (similar to how KLAQ does for Q Connected).

The most important of these submissions is that ALL BANDS must be unsigned; meaning you can be part of a record label in order to participate. If your band is part of an independent or major label, you can't enter. All submissions will end November 30th.

After all the bands have been selected, there will be battles held in various cities. These cities include:

• New York, NY
• Clifton, NJ
• Philadelphia, PA
• Portland, OR
• Seattle, WA
• Bay Area, CA
• Los Angeles, CA
• Orange County, CA
• Sacramento, CA
• San Diego, CA

And 5 cities throughout Texas:

• Austin,
• Dallas
• El Paso
• Houston
• and San Antonio

All the winners will travel to San Diego in the final round. Last year we saw a couple of bands from Texas make all the way to the finals; San Antonio's Donella Drive, and a few from El Paso: Steellake & Hellslain. I know several bands from across the Lone Star State would jump at a chance like this.

This is a certainly a win-win situation; even if you don't make it to the finals, bands have a greater chance of people hearing your music for the first time. We have yet to see a Texas band win this competition so we'll see if this is the year.

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