Former Grand Prize Winners, Cobalt & the Hired Guns are a “boot-stompin’, tambourine-shakin’, irresistibly genuine good time” with talent in multiple genres. In July they took the top spot in the Ska channel, and the Americana flavored “Up to You” was the fan favorite back in May. The band is also environmentally conscious, as their latest record Jump the Fence is a carbon neutral album. They have stated that “all of the greenhouse gases associated with the recording, production, and direct promotion of the CD were offset with investments in wind energy.”