Four local bands will get loud for a good cause.

The acts will compete in the fourth annual Let’s Get Loud Battle of the Bands competition this weekend at Lexington’s Icehouse Amphitheater as they raise funds and awareness for Fisher House of Columbia.

The family-friendly affair is ERA Wilder Realty of Lake Murray’s annual charity event, according to the firm’s Dana Vann.

Each band vies for the most audience votes, as onlookers make their voices heard by donating cash in the bucket of whichever band they like best.

The four bands each have their particularly musical flair. The Robbie Cockrell Band is a country band, and The Ara-V Collective is a funk-pop band with a country twist. French Breakfast is a ’90s-leaning rock band, and the Transonics plays indie rock with an ’80s twist.

The winner of the battle takes home their earnings, while the other bands donate their cash votes to Fisher House. This is the second year the real estate company has given proceeds to the nonprofit.

Vann said ERA Wilder Realty team works with military relocations and veterans on a regular basis and wanted to support the veterans who have to travel to Wm. Jennings Bryan Dorn VA hospital for medical treatment.

Veterans may have to travel far and stay overnight if needed. Hotels can be expensive, so the Fisher House allows veterans to stay in their home away from home for free. There will be 16 suites in Columbia’s Fisher House once completed, hopefully by the end of the year, Vann said, likening the house to a Ronald McDonald house for veterans.

The pandemic delayed the Fisher House project slightly, and they are still in the building phase. The bands performing in the battle donated their time and service to the event, believing in the cause.

Fisher House relies on community support. The Friends of the Fisher House Columbia is a nonprofit dedicated to raising and providing that support so that veterans can stay free of charge. The house is being built on the grounds of the Dorn VA Hospital to allow veterans and their to walk back and forth from the house to the hospital.

The hope is the house provides space for veterans and their families to eat, sleep, do laundry and relax during what is often a trying time.

The estimated cost for Columbia’s Fisher House is about $6.5 million, according to the nonprofit’s website. 

There are other Fisher Houses across the country centered around VA medical centers. The idea started with Zachary Fisher, who worked in construction and decided he wanted to create a space for veterans and families to have a place to stay while receiving treatment. Since then, more than 90 Fisher Houses have