Forgettaboutit Too played host to the second week of first round shows for the Emergenza festival January 26-29. The weekend was cool, with a lot of different styles of music hitting the stage, and the bands were able to please any palate. Thursday night fired off with Misuse, bringing a nice tribute to “An American Tail” with their powerful guitars and good vocals. Show ‘n’ Tell had strong vocals and a very tight drummer. The next band on the schedule didn’t show up, so their review is that they were a very quiet band, led by silence and wonder. El Baño came with a great early American punk style, with solid vocals and great original stuff. Shuteye brought solid progressive rock to the stage, led by strong vocals and great guitars encompassed by a very energetic performance. The final band on Thursday night was Jadewood, with an all-around great rock sound with some really good harmonies. Friday saw the night kicked off by Shifted Fate. They put on a strong performance backed by a great rhythm section. The Demo hit the stage second, with a nice cover of the “Oompa Loompa” song, and some nice original instrumental work as well. Diverse, original music was the key for Skepticynic, as they went from heavier rock to an almost ho-down country appeal led by great solos and vocals. The Easy Kings came to the front with great energy on stage, playing their own blend of GNR-type rock. Violent Iris had some monstrous guitar work with excellent solos and very mature ears for their age! Los De Verdad was skate punk done right. Despite the lead vocalist’s ability to stay upright, they ripped through their set with ease. Clown closed the night with aggressive metal vocals and guitar backed by intense drumming. Scarcella 31 led Saturday night off with great in-tune original party punk. These guys, I am told, were all around 13, the youngest band playing the festival in Texas, but you couldn’t guess it from their abilities. Fun music! As You Wish didn’t disappoint, either, with great energy and great original alt rock. Attached had a great soulful, eclectic sound with some incredible three-part harmonies topping off a very solid set. Sound Breaking Ground exploded with a monstrous sound, let by a great vocalist and a talented crew of musicians. They had absolutely everyone in the club rocking out to their show, and I can’t wait to see them in the second round! Stalking Chloe put on some great original rock with some really nice auxiliary percussion work. Their mix of old school and new school rock was really well put-together. Slappy’s Groove Shack brought us to the smack-your-momma side of funk, with a very talented bassist, great vocals and superb drumming. Sepsis was metal; aggressive vocals with nice melodic overtones were the accent for these guys. Hellfire Revival wrapped the night up, and despite the low attendance put on a solid performance accented by a vocalist with great range and solid American rock. Sunday night’s breakout band was Pawnshop Mafia, and despite this being their first gig, had some great original rock and a decent cover of “Seven Nation Army.” Lay to Waste came with good original metal, with a nice growl from the vocalist. The third band on the night was Brown VS Board, with an almost Incubus-meets-RATM sound. Great guitar work and vocals put them out front and got the crowd fired up. Helios the Archer hit the stage next, with an emo grunge sound, and even though the keyboardist couldn’t play keyboard, he did a great job on backing vocals. Stretching Madness was very diverse, going from an almost 70s American rock sound to a harder alternative, led by nice vocals and harmonies and good stage presence. Mindflow had some great vocals, and was a good strong metal band. The weekend came to a close Sunday night with Shattered Souls, with some nice tag-team guitar work and great stage presence. Houston has always got some kind of surprise up its sleeve, and I can’t wait until th