Thursday, October 12 Lovebox kicked off the first show for the Emergenza Festival in the southwest USA, at Denver’s Benders Tavern. Their sound is very reminiscent of Alice in Chains, and other vocal-driven grunge bands of the late 90’s. With a dark but energetic show they set the bar for the rest of the evening. An all female indie band based mostly out of Denver, with one member flying in from Sacramento for the show, The Jena Tonics were definitely the evening’s crowd pleasers. This band reminded me of Sonic Youth with more developed vocals parts and melodies. Despite a few technical setbacks amid their set, they easily won over most of the crowd and club staff. A three-piece metal band sans bass player, Haunted By Silence crushed. Although originally skeptical about the lack of a bass player, these guys proved that they really can pull it off with their anger alone. They were followed up by Virus/Awaken: a modern rock band (à la Incubus or Creed) with very Geddy-Lee-esque vocals, both in tonality and in range, these guys put on a very polished and well-developed set. First Class Trash took then the stage. Hailing from BFE, this self described psychobilly band brought their A game. Though their stage presence was a little stiff, their sound was on par with the best of the genre (The Rev, Legendary Shack Shakers). Porter followed them: like the redheaded, bastard love child of Stevie Ray Vaughn and Trey Anastasio, Porter breathes new life into the blues-rock-bluegrass-jam-band format by putting a much-needed leash on it. With a solid rhythm section, and excellent guitar work, Porter seemed to occasionally delve into the murky abyss of improvised solos and countermelodies, but exercised restraint by falling back into the original songs structure, just shy of attracting the patculli stinking, zombie dancing masses so often (and often unfairly) associated with improvisational music. The first night was finished by Mr. Lift and 48 Hours, so named because the band was organized 48 hours before the show itself, Lift came out of left field and swept the crowd. With a strong opening monologue, Lift took what was primarily a rock-based show, and quickly created an atmosphere that he not only fit in but owned. Though classed as a live hip-hop act, I found their roots were more firmly planted in R&B, with soulful melodies and an upbeat rhythm section behind him, Lift engaged the audience both while performing, as well as between songs, making the set seem to maintain its momentum throughout. Friday, October 13 Bearze, Alioen, and Joy C opened the Friday show with a bang. Combining the energetic punch and pointed commentary of hip-hop with the soulful melodies of an R&B group, BA&C set the high water mark for the bands to follow. Following BA&C, Mourned by Flies - a metal trio - took to the stage with explosive guitars, and a pounding rhythm section, once again establishing metal as the Denver mainstay. An Act of Murder are a 3 piece metal trio (sans bass) too: these guys shredded through their entire set in little over 15 minutes. But what they lacked in material, they made up for in stage presence, leaving the audience reeling in their wake. Closing the show, Puke Mop drew from a wide variety of influences. Diverging from old school punk, to Nirvana-esque grunge, to slight hints of patculli rock, this band apparently has no fear of crossing the self-imposed boundaries established by most genres. Saturday, October 14 Endless Yeti kicked the Saturday show off with an auditory assault of pounding rhythms and blistering guitar solos. A seeming throwback to the earlier days of metal (read: ripped denim jackets, leather pants, and Pythagorean guitar designs), these guys rocked like no one was looking. Though the parts were technically challenging, the band held it all together tightly, while the voc