By Leiselle Maraj Tuesday, February 12 2013

Water and powder and traditional mas ruled the day at the Downtown judging point yesterday. Machel Montano’s Power Soca Monarch winner floated by a few times but his co-Monarch’s “Fantastic Friday” was played almost non-stop making it a strong contender for the Road March crown.

The action began at minutes to one in the afternoon, almost two hours after the scheduled 11am start for the Parade of the Bands on Carnival Monday. Individual, Rashid Hosein, took to the stage in his Midnight Robber gear to give his speech before making way for the Carnival band, D Hr Mas and their presentation “Euphoria, D Sister Isle”. While the area was empty, spectators began to line the streets as a non-stop flow of bands took over.

Bands filled with masqueraders mostly in their Monday wear of jersey tops and short pants were interspersed with traditional characters who at times, had to battle with loud music from music trucks to make their presentations. Officials at the venue did their best however to ensure traditional mas got its time in the spotlight by promptly asking DJs to turn off their music until the end of the presentations. Spectators were able to see Jab Jabs, several Fancy Indian bands, Baby Dolls, Dames Lorraine, a Topical band and an interesting piece by the mini band, Simply Cultural entitled “Chinese Minstrels”.

Several individuals also passed before the Lord Kitchener stand at the judging point bringing colour to the lacklustre jersey and shorts band presentations. By mid-afternoon, the crowd also had the opportunity to see several popular bands including Legacy’s “Trinbago to Rio”, Dream Team Carnival’s “Flashback”, Rosalind Gabriel’s “Revellers in Paradise” that included 2013 Junior King of Carnival, Gyasi Philbert, Showtime’s “Kitch” and last year’s Band of the Year winner Brian MacFarlane with the 2013 presentation, “Joy: The Finale”.