Twelve bands, three slots and a whole lot of noise.

The Battle of the Bands will take place at 9 p.m. Saturday in the HUB-Robeson Alumni Hall, with each band performing for 20 minutes. The top three bands will be awarded a spot to perform on the Movin' On side stage.

There will also be an announcement about the national acts scheduled to play at Movin' On scheduled for April 26.

Movin' On director Vickie Fahnestock said the committee received 51 local demos in March. She, along with three other members of her core team, worked to narrow those down to 24 and then let the rest of the Movin' On workers vote for the top 12.

Fahnestock (senior-history) said she was looking for bands with a quality sound that would be able to have some fun while playing on the HUB lawn.

All of the bands must have at least one student as a member, and each band had to submit original music. For some bands, this is their first attempt at the Battle.

Drummer Chris Martinez (senior-political science) of Slim Pickins said they decided to enter now that his band finally had a demo recorded. The group came together just a little over a year ago, he added, and enjoys every opportunity to play. The contest aspect of it is merely secondary to the enjoyment of playing live.

"We're just doing it for fun," Martinez said. "If anything happens, it happens."

The band, which Martinez described as hard rock with jam elements, hopes to carry that energy with them on stage and win the crowd over with its good vibes and love for the music.

"People recognize we're having fun, and that just becomes contagious," Martinez said.

Some bands, though, are no strangers to the Battle's stage. The band Fahler was one of the contestants in 2001, and also entered last year but didn't get chosen, said singer Tom Murtaugh (senior-economics).

He said he's hoping the third time's a charm.

"We can only go further. ... we want to keep pushing," the singer said.

The band has tweaked its sound, he added, and hopes to show it off to the crowd.

"We hope to uphold the music and keep the people listening," Murtaugh said.

In addition to all the performances, Fahnestock also said that they will be announcing the national acts set to perform at this year's Movin' On. She added she had been waiting for all contracts to be signed before divulging any of the performers.

The entire festival, now two weeks away, is in its final stages of planning, the director said.

"Everything seems to be falling into place finally," Fahnestock said.

The usual plethora of inflatable games and tents will return to the HUB Lawn on April 26. Of all the things Fahnestock has been planning, one item still lies beyond her control -- the weather. The last time weather was favorable for Movin' On was in 2000, which was also the last year a woman headed the events. Fahnestock said she's banking on a correlation.

"I'm just hoping for the luck of the female director," Fahnestock said.