During the last weekend of October the Emergenza International Music Festival returned to 14 Below out in Santa Monica. The weekend brought the Halloween spirit, many great bands and some very boosterish crowds. It also brought one band that has a long history with Emergenza, from Detroit, to Boston, to Germany then all over the United States on last years B.E.S.T. Tour: the Natives of the New Dawn recently transplanted themselves into southern California and have already begun to build themselves a loyal gang of their Native support. We invited and they were more than willing to come join us for the festivities this weekend, which made the 14 Below audiences ecstatic. The weather was right, the waves crashing out on the beach and the music rockin’ in the club. Thursday, October 26th Thursday night began with the hardcore sounds of Earned in Agony, a young group of lads with enough energy to start the night off with a bang. The Bellflowers came up next with their jazzy sound and brought the mood down a bit, but not at all in negative way. Great musicianship, a tight sound and soulful lyrics impressed most of the crowd on hand. The Drag followed taking the stage with a bit more angst, but not enough to darken the disposition of the audience. With bang-up guitar riffs and nicely shaped vocals, these guys had the house hanging on every note and head-bob. Julie took to the stage and succeeded in winning over everybody in the club including myself, and our wonderful Kangaroo host for the evening. Their catchy melodies, funky beats, hard driving guitars and slapstick attitude made for a great combination of musicality and presentation. Watch out for Julie but don’t be surprised when you come to see them to find a sausage party on stage, as they are not what they seem. Hollowell, with a tough act to follow did just what they needed to as they brought to the stage some of the best original songs of the night. Soothing and smashing simultaneously, these boys really put together a nice sound for anyone to admire. Lux did an admirable job of keeping the quality of music going in the same direction. A little harder than their predecessors, they still kept a melodic tone to the night. Plastizine People brought a more experimental and less structured approach to the stage and was trailed by Sonic Syndrome who gave us the most entertaining moment of the night. Imagine a bass player, cute and cuddly like a teddy bear but massive in stature like a black bear. Now imagine as the energy kicks in a minute or so into the first song and imagine this mammoth of a man start thrashing around like a rat snared in a trap as he trips and hits the deck hard. I got to say, he covered himself well and barely missed a note even though it took him well into the second song to replace the strap on his bass and get up from one knee. The night was finished off with Quick Six, a threesome of good-looking kids and melodic rock tunes that the ladies adored. Friday, October 27th Friday night began with In Spectral, a progressive metal band that is much more progressive than metal, although they do have their moments of ruthless disregard for snapping necks. Their complexity and technique makes them a must see for all metal heads that appreciate more than callous palm-muting of the low E. Freddy’s Four Fingers brought their indie rock to the stage and were then succeeded by King Washington. Although they may have embarrassed their female companions with the garb chosen for presentation of their comedic pop rock, they could never shame themselves with the delivery of songs like the Beatlesque, “Enjoy Your Face”. They may not be the true next coming of John or Paul, but these guys are a group that will be entertaining bar crowds for years to come. Requisite took the stage after the humo