TWENTY-ONE year-old Sophie Lancaster was kicked to death by a group of teenagers because of her taste in fashion and music. Stamp Out Prejudice Hatred Intolerance Everywhere (S.O.P.H.I.E.) seeks to commemorate Sophie's short life by highlighting and eradicating mindless violence from society as far as it is possible.

The event in Basingstoke was just one of many which has happened up and down the country. The Great Western hosted three days of music, both live and pre-recorded with a couple of dozen bands and DJs, several hundred fans, helpers and supporters, raising over £750 in the process. It is not possible to do justice to every band, DJ and helper, so what follows are some edited highlights for the record.

Basingstoke's own ska-punkers Signs of Insanity kicked off the live music on Friday with a blistering set played to a packed house. In spite of pre-event publicity being a little thin on the ground, a massive crowd had assembled for a good-natured bit of skanking.

Another Basingstoke band, The Harry Macintosh Project, took the headline slot and they were truly amazing. I have not seen them for a while, but clearly they have not been going to seed. Their genre-defying style is superb, a great live band complimenting perfectly the lads from Signs.

Saturday saw a number of bands and DJs in action throughout the day. It was impossible for me to be there from the start, regardless of how important the charity event was but I arrived in time for Brother Talons, an electronica duo I was rather lukewarm about. But it gave me a chance to catch up on what I had missed, including the amazing Sniper, Dr Gonzo and a probable one and only performance by Basingstoke super-group Year of the Jackal.

Next up were Street Fight Silence from Bracknell who prior to playing demurely compared themselves unfavourably with the Police - in fact they were a pretty amazing band. Their set began rather mellow, but got heavier and more energetic as time passed and they ended in very respectable emo-metal terms. They had a nice little of posse of followers on hand to cheer them on.

Headline for Saturday were Aldershot crazies Children of the Clegg. They have played Basingstoke several times before and their early, uncertain punk performances have been replaced with much more "in your face" metal-core. You always get a show with these lads and tonight was no different. The sound system either could not cope with their over-exuberance or was on the blink because the clarity of the vocals was not good.

Sunday's live music kicked off with Reading/Guildford thrash-punkers Sitty Limits who were playing their first show in Basingstoke. There was quite a large crowd of the usual suspects to witness this baptism of fire. They were amazing, the speed and power of their delivery taking the breath away. Lead singer Louis always ends up in the thick of the crowd, blurring the line between band and fans.

They were followed by another Bracknell band, Kraken, who were definitely metal-core in flavour. They had a rough start and some inter-band squabbling was a little undignified. At times they shone brilliantly, other times the songs seemed to plod along. They certainly have potential, but they did not fully reach it with this performance.

Basingstoke's crazies Placid Storm were up next, for their best performance since reforming. Singer Nick was totally in the zone and the musical support by the rest of the band was faultless. By far the biggest crowd had assembled to catch an unforgettable show. The cherry on the top for everyone was the fact they played some of their old, familiar and well loved songs - I appreciate that bands might get fed up playing songs hundreds or even thousands of times, but fans never tire of hearing them live.

No less exciting were the next band, the Grizzley Ends from Guildford - no strangers to Basingstoke, but once again enjoying a really responsive crowd. They play fast, no-nonsense old school punk, cleanly delivered, with no frills, no spills. Considering this line up was practically thrown together at the eleventh hour, a real A list had been achieved. Next up from Basingstoke were Moses Kitchen, an older, progressive rock band who were technically great. Having said that, this was probably not the right slot for them and it was a little sad to see the crowd dwindle quite alarmingly. They might have fared better a little earlier on in the evening.

The final headline band of the event for a historic final performance were Basingstoke's own The Misnomer. The popular pop-punksters are not splitting up, but are changing their name to The Atom Gang. They were also on top form and had managed to recover some of the lost crowd and wow them with a fantastic set. This certainly would have been the perfect opportunity to take a leaf out of the Placid Storm book and play a few of the old favourites as a final swansong, but it was not to be. Only time will tell in The Atom Gang can fill The Misnomer's shoes.

An amazing weekend for a really good cause. Thanks have to go to all the bands, DJs, bar staff, helpers and those who donated prizes for the raffle - I'm gutted I didn't win the £100 tattoo voucher!

-Neil Duncan, ISSUEPUNKZINE