Peak Performance pops 2010 top 20

Music contest lures veterans and newbies alike in its second year

For some, the second instalment of the Peak Performance Project will be an opportunity for a second chance.

Consider singer-songwriter Adaline, who last year finished in fourth place, just shy of snagging one of the music contest's three top prizes.

This year, along with fellow 2009 Top 20 finalists Kuba Oms and Bodhi Jones, Adaline will give radio station 100.5 The Peak FM's gigantic music competition another shot.

And because Adaline and Oms finished fourth and fifth respectively last year, they were both offered automatic entry into the 2010 edition of the contest.

"They weren't sure if they would come back, actually," 100.5 The Peak's assistant program director Tamara Stanners said. "Their careers were off and moving and they didn't know if they could commit the time because it is a commitment -- it's like going to university. I don't think Adaline knew how much it was going to change her, and how far she's come in a year since is pretty amazing."

This year, 470 bands, singer-songwriters and other melody makers came from all over B.C. in an attempt to sink their grappling hooks into this year's Peak Performance Project but, in the end, only 20 acts managed to get a firm footing and start climbing their way toward the Peak's top prize of $100,500.

Announced Monday afternoon at the Vancouver radio station, the Top 20 are: Adaline, Kuba Oms, Bodhi Jones, Christopher Arruda, Greg Sczebel, Steph Macpherson, Acres of Lions, Parlour Steps, Kyprios, Jess Hill, 41st and Home, Delhi 2 Dublin, Debra-Jean Creelman, Behind Sapphire, Said the Whale, Vince Vaccaro, Yes Nice, Christina Maria, Aidan Knight, and the Racoons.

"Seriously, I am so excited about this Top 20," Stanners said. "Last year was good and we were really excited, but what we've done with the second year's Top 20 is elevate the whole project to a completely different place."

Where the Peak's Top 20 really surprises, however, is in the inclusion of better-established acts like indie rockers Said the Whale, Juno-winning modern pop soulman Greg Sczebel and trad-rocker Vince Vaccaro, who are already familiar to the airwaves and the touring regimen. "We had some of the more established musicians, who didn't know what the project was going to be able to offer them, buy into it," Stanners said. "We have got people that are kind of well-known. They sizzle. And because of that, I think it's going to bring a whole lot more attention to the project, but [these artists] also get the fact that we can help them."

Some of the acts on the list may already get airplay via the Peak, Stanners added, but that doesn't mean that a red-hot band like Said the Whale or a fast-rising solo artist like Vaccaro don't need the kind of support the Peak Performance Project can give them. And, from the get-go, it's a hefty amount of support. All acts listed are guaranteed to receive at least $3,500 in development money, on top of advice from experts in the music industry who will act as their guides for the next few months. Being a veteran doesn't necessarily give you an edge either.

The Top 20 acts know what lies ahead: a gruelling marathon consisting of seminars and sessions, culminating with a boot camp at Rockridge Canyon Resort in Princeton before having to face a judging panel that will evaluate their chops in areas like marketing, live performance and career planning.

Last year, Kelowna rockers We Are the City walked away with the top prize of $150,000, pared down this year to $100,500 to give more money to as many finalists as possible. Second, third, fourth and fifth place finishers will receive $75,000, $50,000, $10,000 and $5,000, respectively.

The winner of this year's Peak Performance Project will be revealed in November.

The Peak Performance Project was named Promotion of the Year at Toronto's Canadian Music Week earlier this year. In total, the Peak Performance Project will be handing out more than $315,000 in development prizes in 2010.

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