BEST HARD ROCK/METAL BAND

1st Place: No Loving Place
2nd Place: Drunk Drivers
3rd Place: Phoenix

After recovering from the jaw dropping, gut wrenching, whiskey spilling, spiked mace to the groin that is Desolate Void not making the top three best local hard rock/metal bands (which is like Bon Iver not placing in their respective category), I am here to announce who did. Eau Claire’s No Loving Place, celebrating a decade in existence this year, takes top honors, proving that some folks around here do love you. Crawling out of the mid 90s, from the same fetid cesspool of a scene that spawned the likes of Three Liter Hit, Voodoo Love Mint, Touch Is Automatic, and Curious Jorge (represent!), Eau Claire’s Drunk Drivers blow a 2.0 in second place. Burning up the third slot is Phoenix, who garnered 146 votes while the rest of us wait for them to rise from the ashes of a cover band. – Andy Patrie