TwangOff began its run Thursday, September 19, 2002 at The Lyon's Den in Chicago. A hit from the beginning, it's continued to grow. Now in it's second season, the show is moving to a bigger and better club, Martyrs'.

The show follows a battle-of-the-bands style format, with three pre-screened acts performing up to 40 minutes each. The order of performance is chosen at random 30 minutes prior to show time, a feature that encourages fans of each band to arrive early and with a heightened level of interest in the other acts competing on the bill. August 19 will feature Antje, Big Sky Stringband and Backyard Tire Fire

A tribunal of music-industry professionals judge the contenders based on musicianship, stage presence, audience response and repertoire. Past judges have included record company executives, agents, purchasers, press and nationally touring entertainers. Once a unanimous decision has been reached, the winner is announced and presented with one giant novelty check and one small stack of real cash. Photos are taken and often the triumphant band heralds their victory with a 3 or 4 song encore.

While some have speculated that the final performance slot offers the benefit of a primed and lubricated audience, TwangOff winners have come from all three positions. "Audience response is weighted, but it's the judges that have to make the final decision", says TwangOff producer Michael Holm. "That can be a tough call to make when you've got three great bands. The audience members have their idea of who should win, and the judges have their own - and it's not always the same. It adds the element of suspense to the event and makes things exciting". So far no judges have been harmed after delivering their verdict.

Beginning in May of this year, TwangOff Records began offering live recordings of the performances just minutes after the show. "The Homegrown Series" documents each TwangOff set and packages them independently. It allows audience members to take the shows home with them and allows fans that couldn't attend to order them on the web from www.twangoffrecords.com.