Is this San Antonio storm ever gonna subside? I’m not talkin’ about the weather, I’m talking about the level of talent that I am seeing at the Emergenza shows. Now, I’ve seen these bands in their first round shows, but they definitely stepped up their A-game for the second round. Let’s review, shall we? Of My Redemption started the weekend with a very aggressive original sound, accented by strong vocals and a solid backing band. Demize melted faces and left none unscarred. Balls-out heavy metal is the only way to describe their sound. 24/7 came with good, original hard rock with solid vocals and good work from the bass and drums. Ashburn did not disappoint, with pensive vocals and steady timing leading to a great audio and visual experience. Shallow Grave also brought the harsh sounds of metal, with the talent that experience can show. The night was wrapped with The Amoretti, who showed me that even with some lineup changes they could rock with the best of them. Friday night was fired off with Sindustry. Despite the loss of a guitar, they still put on a great show and came with a nice, fresh sound. Fear the Fall had solid tag-team vocals and strong guitar and bass. Doom To Bloom had passionate vocals over a creative team of musicians. Death Wish was good hard metal, and brought some great new material to this show. Nothing More put on a monstrous show, with great stage presence and wonderful versatility. Rhyme Mind Theory wrapped the night with articulate vocals and nice trumpet accent work. They were a very solid band and put on a great show! Saturday saw the versatility of Insurgent start it off with a great punk set. The Uptown Creepers brought the fat sound of a great ska band with tight horns and solid vocals. Out Of Order came with solid punk backed by and excellent drummer and great vocals. Strikes Back had a great set full of creativity and stout original material. Fuck The Mainstream finished the night off with a powerful set of original material, and their lead vocalist prowled the stage like a lion. Despite their lead singer/guitarist being in the hospital with 105 degree fever, Apart From All pulled together an impromptu set of great stuff. Their level of dedication to their music is unmatched! Reven came with some great versatility with everyone changing instruments in the set. Provoking vocals led their original rock to a peak. Oridium’s lead singer kept the crowd captive while they injected their sound deep into everyone’s heads. Kaos’ face-melting metal was laid perfectly on top of solid percussion and drum work and chest-ripping bass. The Others came with soulful vocals and a party attitude, despite playing a lot of covers and everyone had a good time. We’ll see the bands that moved on from this round on June 9th back at The Place Spirits Emporium for the city final, no holds barred!!! One Love,