Forget grinding to prerecorded rap mixes in two inches of beer sludge at frat parties this Thursday night.
If you go to Jab'erwok'e instead, you'll be greeted by live music ranging from punk rock to modern jazz.
The Battle of the Bands, co-sponsored by HooTV and Sam Hill Entertainment, will feature four student bands, Afrodisiac, Finding Time, Prom Queen and Postmodal Collective, all of whom will be playing to win.
In addition to a night of music, "Battle of the Bands" also will serve as a fundraiser for HooTV, the University's cable television station.
According to fourth-year College student and public relations officer for HooTV Sarah Fouts, HooTV decided to organize a fundraiser to support the nine shows it produces.
"We need more basic equipment -- so many microphones and tapes," Fouts said. Fouts added that she also hopes HooTV will be able to purchase a camera with the money they raise.
"There might be a TV studio built in Clemons as well," she added. "We hope to donate some money toward that."
HooTV had the idea and the drive for a Battle of the Bands fundraiser, but wondered how they could make it happen. Unbeknownst to them, Sam Hill Entertainment also was considering producing a similar competition with their connections to many music groups. So when HooTV looked to Sam Hill for help, it was a perfect match.
"HooTV contacted us, and we helped them set the whole thing up," said third-year College student Ann Kingston, an intern with Sam Hill who helped HooTV prepare for the competition.
Sam Hill decided on Jab'erwok'e as the venue, listened to demos from various bands and picked the four that will perform on Thursday.
Afrodisiac, one of the four bands chosen, mainly plays covers and recently started writing their own music.
Second-year Engineering student Alex Neuhausen plays guitar for the group.
"What distinguishes us [from other cover bands] is that we're really diverse in the music we play," Neuhausen said.
The band's repertoire of Weezer and Bon Jovi to Sublime and Eminem supports its motto: They "want to be everyone's favorite band," Neuhausen said.
Having performed at various fraternity parties around Grounds, Neuhausen said Afrodisiac hopes to continue helping University students have a good time.
"It's about delivering a party," he said.
Neuhausen said he considers one of Afrodisiac's greatest performances one played at Radford College.
The audience at the fraternity party was singing along and really enjoying the music, Neuhausen said. When the band was finished, "300 people in this basement started chanting, 'One more song! One more song!'"
"That was amazing," he said after a slight pause.
Finding Time, another band to perform Thursday night, has a very different sound.
Second-year College student Jamie Sisley is the band's lead vocalist.
"We're a mix of rock and funk, and a little bit of jazz," Sisley said. "We're trying to create an eclectic sound."
Influenced by music greats such as John Lennon and Herbie Hancock, Sisley said he writes the vocals and lyrics for the band's songs while the other members bring their own musical talents to the table.
Playing mainly at fraternities and other parties around Grounds, Sisley said the band drinks "a lot" of Red Bull to get psyched up for a show.
"We love playing in Charlottesville --- it's the land of Dave Matthews, 'frattiness' and college rock," he said with a laugh.
The musicians in Finding Time came together in August with hopes of creating something great together.
"We've been friends for a long time and we respect each other musically," Sisley said. "It's the best of both worlds."
Like Finding Time, the members of Prom Queen began as friends who shared a love of music.
As first years, the guys casually played their guitars together on the steps of their dorm building, said third-year College student and Prom Queen bassist Drew Butler.
"Second year, we thought, why not make something of it?" Butler said.
According to Butler, Prom Queen's name originally was an indication of the group's self-deprecative humor.
"Originally it was mainly to do with our lack of talent," Butler said with a laugh. "Now it's just something that stands out. Why not keep it?"
Prom Queen has a musical foundation of pop and punk.
"We build on that with influences from a lot of things," Butler said.
Listing music as their number one passion, all of the band's members said they dream of being involved with music for a living. They said they enjoy being able to help their audiences have a good time. "It's cool to see people crowd-surfing," Butler said. "Sometimes there's a sea of people going nuts."
Although their music tries to promote a fun atmosphere, Butler said most of Prom Queen's lyrics are serious.
"The majority of the songs are about a deeply personal event that happened to one of us about a year ago," Butler said. "But, occasionally we write goofy songs."
Because of Prom Queen's style of music and their personal lyrics, though, Butler said he thinks the band has the potential to appeal to various audiences.
Unlike the other competing bands, the competition's final band, Postmodal Collective, was put together by the University. A jazz sextet that plays a modern style of jazz, the band's members were paired through a class in September.
Second-year College student and the group's guitar player, Evan Wolf, said the group's name was a last minute decision. Regardless, though, the group is happy with their name, Wolf said.
"'Postmodal' refers to an era in jazz. Music got a little more free and moved away from standard convention," he said. "That's what we were going for." Wolf, whose personal musical influence is Wes Montgomery, said he is happy about the reception the band has received in various Charlottesville venues such as Orbit and in previous performances at Jab'erwok'e.
"Anytime we play people seem to enjoy us," he said.
Although Postmodal Collective mainly plays music written by other jazz musicians, Wolf said they try to personalize it as much as they can.
"We pick songs we like by jazz musicians and take liberties with it," he said. "It's a combination of other people's material and our own unique spin on it."
Wolf said he is confident and believes Postmodal Collective has a good chance at winning the competition.
"We're good musicians," he said.
Sam Hill Entertainment Representative Andy Jaspen said several "celebrity judges" will choose the winning band, but the audience response also may be taken into consideration.
"We will have judges from musictoday.com, "C-ville Weekly" and from several well-known local touring bands, Jaspen said.
According to Kingston, the winner will receive approximately 10 hours of recording time with Crystal Sonic, a recording studio in Charlottesville. Runners-up will receive gift certificates for Plan 9, a local music store.
The competition, beginning Thursday night at 9, will have a $4 cover charge at the door. Plastic cups can be purchased for a small price and will provide $1 drafts from Jab'erwok'e's bar. Fouts said she hopes the night will provide HooTV with approximately $500.
Butler from Prom Queen summed up the sentiments of all four bands.
"This is our first competition," he said. "If we win, that would be pretty cool."
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