Wales’ largest ever skills and careers event, skillscymru, has been boosted by the announcement that the CLIC Battle of the Bands 2010 finalists will play at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday 18 September.

BOTB is a competition open to bands and artists in Wales aged between 11-25 organised by CLIC, the online channel and printed zine offering information, news and advice for young people in Wales.

Five BOTB finalists will take to the stage during the free-to-enter event at the home of Welsh sport on September 16-18, which features over 100 employers, colleges and training providers showcasing a range of interactive demonstrations in various disciplines including engineering, construction, retail, hospitality, cookery, sport and fitness.

With 20,000 visitors expected over the three-days of skillscymru, the bands – judged by a panel of industry experts – are certain to gain plenty of new fans amongst the sizeable audience.

Event organisers have confirmed that the winners will play a 20-minute set on the main stage on the stadium’s pitch, in front of all event attendees. They will also bag a list of prizes that include:

* A week’s studio time with an established producer
* The recording and pressing of a demo in both CD and MP3 formats
* Digital distribution to 100+ outlets worldwide (including iTunes), courtesy of EmuBands
* A professional music video shoot with Seraphim Pictures
* A professional photo shoot by ALX MLS Photographic
* A professional website by Burning Red Studio
* Gig slots at Wales-wide CLIC events throughout the year
* A press release to go out with the demo 
* An artist profile with pictures in CLICzine which is distributed to every school, college, university and youth provision in Wales

Entry to BOTB is simple. Just email a link to your MySpace page to botb@cliconline.co.uk and CLIC will do the rest.

The closing date for entries is Friday 30 July and voting will take place online from 2- 31 August.

Finalists will receive expenses for travel to and from the Millennium Stadium.

Check out the official CLIC BOTB page for full information.