Who the hell are?

Kopek

Final countdown: If you're in a band, you may have at one time entered or considered entering a Battle of the Bands contest. It's an institution almost as old as rock'n'roll itself, a chance to kick other bands' asses and bag yourself a prize to boot. Some "serious" bands wouldn't lower themselves to enter such a contest, but one Dublin trio weren't afraid to take a chance and sign up for the ultimate rock tournament - the Global Battle of the Bands contest. This was the mother of all Battle of the Bands, with a judging panel that included U2 producer Steve Lillywhite and ex-Pistol Glen Matlock, and a hundred grand's worth of prizes. Sure beats a case of beer and a free recording session in Rathole studios. The 24 finalists from around the world first had to win their national Battle of the Bands contest before they could qualify for the finals, held in the London Astoria last December. And who won the grand prize? Who the hell do ya think?

In bloom: Kopek are singer/guitarist Dan Jordan, bassist Brad Kinsella and drummer Shane Cooney. All three share a love of hard rock and grunge, somewhere between Radiohead, G'N'R and Nirvana. Friends Brad and Shane had been jamming together for a year, and found Dan through a local advert. They started off in 2001 as Bloom, and released their self-financed debut, The Landing, a year later. The album got the thumbs-up from the Guardian, no less, which hailed Kopek as "just the shot in the arm necessary to kill off the Louis Walsh byproducts stunting the growth of irish music today".

Dam Yankees: Not content with remaining local heroes, the trio relocated to the fragrant climes of Amsterdam, and toured Europe in a van borrowed from one of their new neighbours. They moved to the US in 2004 and played gigs around the country, including LA's Viper Rooms and New York's legendary CBGB. While in the US, they also recorded tracks with producers such as Danny Saber and Richard Dodd, and have since released an EP, Subhuman Lovesick Blues, which features such hard-rockin' tunes as White Collar Lies, The Easyway and Cocaine ChestPain.

Home run: Dan, Brad and Shane are back in Ireland and continuing the world tour they won as part of the Global Battle of the Bands first prize. They're playing the Hub in Dublin tonight and Paddy's in Ballymahon, Co Longford tomorrow, after which they head off for more dates in Europe. They've signed a management deal with Valentino & Co in New York, who are currently shopping the band to record companies. Whoever signs them up will at least know they've picked a winner.