It was a tiring but satisfying week for Rob Ball, organiser of Winchester's biggest Oxjam event.

Rob, who runs The Winchester Massive website as a community forum for local bands, put on seven days of gigs at three different venues, with 45 different acts performing. The last was on Wednesday October 18.

After the marathon gig-fest, Rob had raised £400 for Oxfam, the charity behind Oxjam, and said he was exhausted but it was worth it.

Students from Peter Symonds College, Katie Wheeler and Georgia Emblen, organised an acoustic event at the college.

Katie said: "We wanted to support Oxfam's month of music in October and this informal gig gave students and bands a chance to show their support too."

Georgia added: "We were really pleased with the turnout, and we'd like to thank the bands - Rachel Cranshaw, Citizen, The Moho, The Racing Snakes and Service 68 - for their support."

A good crowd turned out for the second half of the all day Oxjam event at The Railway in Winchester on Saturday October 14.

From 2pm-7.30pm people enjoyed Service 68, Rivers of Sound, The Moho, Citizen, The Ashbies, Thomas Joseph, Ryan O'Reilly and theatre from The River People.

Money Tree, The Rebel Ching and Broken Jack played at the start of the evening session and we turned up just in time for The Mescalitas set.

The London-based three-piece girl band were striking in appearance and delivered a lively, fast-paced set.

Their catchy, punky sound was complimented by the lead singer's husky vocals.

It was obvious the girls were having a good time, buoyed on by a welcoming crowd, and no one was able to stand still.

Ben Dlugokecki and his band then took to the stage.

For those who enjoy watching teen drama series like Hollyoaks, Smallville and Orange County, this form of mellow pop will appeal.

The song writing was solid and heartfelt and the set was delivered by musicians who obviously enjoy and care about their music.

However, it didn't appeal to all in the audience as attention drifted and at times the bustle of the crowd chatting made it hard to hear parts of the set.

After a rousing finale from Dlugokecki, The Mopes stepped up.

This seven-piece, who looked like a cross between the Happy Mondays and some kind of folk band, gave a quirky performance which had a mixture of blues, folk and rock influences.

Rooms+LCD, the local rap duo, finished off the evening.

All in all, well worth the £2 entrance fee that went to help the worthy cause of Oxfam.

Louise Glyde