Calgary''s notorious "Cow town" nickname certainly didn''t fit this weekend''s show which was busting out with ill sound''s and set''s that would put the annual Polka to shame! This was the first weekend that broke the ice with the local cowboy''s screaming the Emergenza name. Thursday brought in some fresh local talent which included a band called Head First who stood up to the crowd with their game face on and had the crowd off the walls. Following their set was Jay Burns who had everything else including a "Cadillac" for their opener. Friction Loss came out of the lion''s den and played with force, while 8008 had a different chew toy for their sound breaking out "The Good World" to round it off. Next up was VOA who paid their debt with "Twenty years Eternal" and advanced them onto the semifinals. The Empathy''s lead singer had his back to the crowd for the entire set, but managed to face the crowd on the last song titled "Broken family", Victimless Crime shattered the youth while they killed the chords and finished the night. Friday rolled in and started with the band Anoetic who had their territory marked with a song titled "The lizard song" which was a huge crowd pleaser. The Travezty came clean and heightened the room like a temporary tattoo. Eight Bit Evolution had silent screams that paved a new road for the sets to follow. While A World Asleep painted the stage red, and Rezinator turned it around and broke out some noise with their fellow bus groupies in the crowd to cheer them on. Stinkhammer pounded out their set with metal beer kegs that gave a unique sound as the lead singer beat them with wooden batons and hung from the ceiling light fixture, this set ended with a cloud of sawdust and their fans screaming for more! To round off this bill was a band Katabasis who complimented their previous Emergenza counterparts with a set that had the room wanting more. With two nights under the Emergenza belt Saturday was another rocking ride on the horses back with Amaranth burning fate, and The Heavy Feather band who had the crowd floating through the air with a retro set that had a song titled "Molly Sue" which included a harmonica and the singer''s raspy voice set the mood for the crowd. Eve''s Reflection''s masquerade pleased the audience with changing sounds throughout their set. While Pop Debris popped a sugar pill and sweetened the stage with rocking beats. Creature Republic were waking the dead with the written aspect of a song titled "Blisters", and the band Hypnopilot surrounded the stage with fans and played a set like a motorcycle on a dirt road in the middle of summer. The final night of this music rodeo was Sunday where the band Remission started the evening and finished their set with "In the shade". Second on the bill was Fluffy the Pitbull who created a sense of propaganda, while Imperative changed the mood with a song titled "Learning to live". Dirty Zane had the crowd oblivious to their song titled "Self Doubt", and the band Halo electrified the stage while the lead guitarist ran and played into the crowd with the wireless Sennheiser instrument pack and left a set for the crowd to remember! Six Pack Jacket were old enough for a beer and knee deep in their set that advanced them onto the semifinals, and a band called Dead Jesus finished off this evening.