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Rising music stars will battle it out for a chance to win vital air time on an award-winning Wearside radio station.

The University of Sunderland’s 107 Spark FM has teamed up with Eauzone café to create Battle Of The Bands, an exciting new platform for artists to showcase their talent.

The event will take place at the Eauzone Restaurant and Bar on the corner of Norfolk Street in Sunniside, Sunderland, on Monday (May 31).

All bands are made up of students from the university, as well as graduates.

The line-up includes: Red Light Trio, Ink, The Flytes, Edge of Autumn, Rainfalldown and Daniel Versus the World.

A member of the Spark FM team will be on the judging panel, and the winning band will receive an hour on air dedicated entirely to their band, plus a further two hours to help co-present Spark FM’s Local Music Show. Their tracks will also be played every day as part of the station’s full playlist for three weeks.

For the runner up, tracks will be played every day for one week and the band will get the chance to pop into the Spark FM studio on St Peter’s campus, for an interview on the breakfast or drive-time show.

Lee Sevenoaks, Spark FM station manager, said: “Since launching in October, Spark FM has supported local music with our ‘6 til 6′ guarantee, playing local artists at least once per hour. We wanted to really show how passionate and committed we are to supporting local artists so decided to put on a Battle of the Bands, all the bands taking part are bands we play on our local list.

“This is a great opportunity to showcase their talent at a free event. This station is all about creating opportunities for people, and the North East has some fantastic bands we want to showcase how good they really are.”

The battle kick-starts the Sunderland Live Fringe Festival, May 31 to June 13, in the city centre.

Gemma Rodgerson, from Eauzone, said: “This is a great opportunity to give up-and-coming local bands a platform to showcase their talents. We are delighted to join forces with Spark FM, as well as Studio 47, a recording and rehearsal studio, to make this happen.”

Food will be served 6pm-7.45pm, and the battle will begin at 8pm. The event is free and all are welcome.

For more information, e-mail battleofthebands@sparksunderland.com