Last year—after trials untold, commitment unmatched and discipline unimaginable—Fullerton’s Steelwells fought and sweat and hook-and-harmonied their way to the title of “Best Live Band” at the Orange County Music Awards. And now? That long march begins anew with the start of the OCMA’s winnerization process at Detroit, in which the first five of a long list of local bands try and make it through a panel of judges to the finals. We play no favorites in this pick, so we aren’t going to handicap a potential victor—Paulie Pesh has a Van Morrison-meets-Elephant 6 vibe, the Gromble rep Pete and Pete and sound kinda like old Ben Folds, and Satisfaction’s James Fletcher has been besting live bands since ever. But we will tell you— somebody is gonna be a winner.
Tue., Jan. 3, 7:30 p.m., 2012
