THE TECHNOPHOBES:
A band whose lead singer was using some kind of electronic device to create all sorts of weird effects and rhythms, a band with some great ideas but so flamin' twisted, it's untrue.The dynamics of their songs is shit hot and they have some potentially huge songs that need a spot of refining, but overall they sounded like a quite unique mix of commerical, bit punky and industrial, with more ideas per song than you can poke a pig with. But the set roasts, and the last track in particular set the crowd alight.

THE SILENT REVOLUTION:
On the opening track, with a line-up of two acoustic guitars, bass and drums plus shared lead and harmony vocals, you think it's just not gonna work, as the guitars seem buried in the mix. But then they hit the second track, the guitars shine though and the song proves to be a killer song while the next track works even better as a slice of anthemic acoustic rock, bizarre as that term may seem. The harmonies are spot on while the actual songs are quite addictive, with the lead vocal really cutting through. Difficult to liken them to anyone else by virtue of the strength of playing and singing, but definitely a highly original and enjoyable live band.

THE ARGUMENTS:
They play well enough, the songs are solid, but you can't pigeon-hole it and nothing seemed to reach out and grab me. The last track was good with a certain Pink Floyd quality to it and was the best track of the set. But overall, I found it hard to say too much about them on first viewing.

ELYSIUM:
They play a kind of punky AOR-touched anthemic indie-rock if you want to know - solid, well played, songs a bit samey but pleasant enough. They tended to go for the more wall-of-sound approach rather than any particular intra-song dynamics, but you really need to hear the vocals clearly and, for some reason, the PA was not being kind to them, adnd too many times, they just got lost. For anthmic punk-metal, it improved as it went on, the second half of the set, for some reason, being far better than the first.

NUGROUND:
One of those band with a great stage presence who move around a lot but play as a seriously tight unit as well as 5 individuals. Song-wise, they started and endded with rocking tracks and genrally showed themselves to be a combination of indie and rock. The last track is a slow anthem that builds to a rousing finale and certainly shows what the band is capable of producing. Nothing memorable on first hearing but a band you'd want to see again.

WTN:
Part nu-metal, part emo, part American rock, I caught passages that reminded me of the likes of Funeral For A Friend and Foo Fighters, to name but two. Got a great bassist, while the band play it well tight and solid with a great sense of dynamics and some scorching dual-guitar leads and inteplay. The vocals could be stronger and more distinctive and the songs could do with being more memorable. Fantastic playing, look great on stage, but give them some betetr songs and you'd have one red hot band on yer hands.

THE 123's:
It may be the case that the lead singer looked like he'd come from a plastering job, the rhythm guitarist reminded me of King Crimson's Adrian Belew and the bassist spent an inordinate amount of time staring at the floor, BUT they play one smoking cauldron of anthemic nu-metal-indie-boogie that goes along like an express train, the whole band on fire and rocking. A nid-set slower song actually felt right thanks to the dynamics of the arrangement and the way it builds, even if possibly a shade too long for a 25 minute set, but under normal circumstances, would fit like a glove. The songs are meorable enough to make you want to hear them again, which says a lot for the future of this band, although the last track seemed to end things on a note that was more down than up, which was a weird thing to do.

LEBOWSKI:
Just one awesome stunner of a band. Psychedelic metal with guitar solos, leads and effects, an opening track that seemed to last about ten minutes, but then the whole set seemed to play as one epic track - mind-bending!! Keeping you totally hooked to their stage presence, they play a unique metal brew with red hot guitar work throughout. It's real metal but with so much originality - at one point the lead singer is singing down a megaphone, while two thirds of the way through, on walks this guest female violinist to raise the stakes even further as the band spirals into hyperspace. Simply amazing, in no way radio friendly, but the sort of album - when it comes, for surely it must - that would sell by the truckload to rock fans as diverse as Rush, Monster Magnet and Pearl Jam. If the world needs a real orginal metal band, then this lot are it - there's no half way house, no compromises - you love it or hate it. I loved it!!

AIRSPIEL:
A sort of "new millennium Squeeze" with impassioned indie anthems that wreak of melancholy and heartbreak, but rarely will you hear them done as powerfully and well written and arranged as this. The vocalist is strong, loud and clear, the chiming guitars a perfect backing, while the songs have dynamics, are well played and you can even hear the keyboard player! Can't say it's my sort of thing, musically, but any label wanting indie power ballads with heartfelt passion and an air of gloom, then look no further - a song act for sure.

QUIXOTE:
What do you get if you cross The Police with Razorlight? Close to this lot, actually. They have a great Andy Summers-esque guitarist, songs that are close to memorable on first hearing with strong lead vocals and play things tight. They have an energetic sound with some solid lead guitar work. Class, professional, tight - but there's something missing, I think - needs to be seen a second time, as my attention was starting to wander by the end of the set.

CAPSTIN POLE:
They set up a digital drum kit, the lead singer looked like he was auditioning for a part in The Blues Brothers and they began with a rather strong, what you'd call energetic, anthemic indie song that sounded pretty good. Then, second track, another song that was a bit slower, certainly more faceless, and by now you're wondering where it's all gonna go. Then - without warning - the singer announces that we're all going "Nightclubbing", sets off a digital drum programme, which ADDS to the drummer at the back, the bass pounds, the guitar explodes, the singer lets rip and the roof of the building takes off. The crowd went wild, we all stood up to let our jaws drop on the ground as this incendiary slice of industrial strength funk-rock just tore the place apart. Put this track in any concert hall, anywhwre, and the place is jumping - guaranteed, no word of a lie - just friggin'awesome. Forget the rest of the set, just play me "Nightclubbin' all night long. But then they only went and did it again for the final track and not a person in the building was standing still. Dunno what that second track was all about, but with pieces like the last two dominating a full set, this band could tear their way through concert halls and night clubs from Land's End to John O'Groats - fantastic and then some!!

TWISTED RAINBOW:
Following a taped intro that built to a crescendo, this band blasted into punk heaven then rocked, thrashed and punked a napalm-drenched path to aural cataclysm. Then they took it all down for an anthem, sort of Blink 182 on downers. Varied songs, energy levels in the red, plenty of dynamics, sonic overload even more. Not high on the originality stakes, but they had the audience headbancing and moshing, so I guess they were well pleased.

THE SUSPECTS:
If ever there was a band that reminded me of a cross between Oasis and The Cult, this is it. Now you may well ask, do we need another Oasis, but when you get a band playing, singing, composing and delivering the goods as well as this, who cares whether or not it sounds like someone else - it's fun, it's addictive and choc full of strong songs, fluid guitar work and the sort of band that you would walk through a ploughed field to see again. Sheer class!

JACC:
Well, stone me! - a punk band with as much class as the previous band! You can't fault the playing and arranging, done with huge energy levels and strength, but you can fault the songs themselves. They're good - hot even in parts - but not the stuff that this band needs. Write a couple of hellishly addictive songs, and this band would be ready to take on the world. Looked the part, sounded great, a band on fire and getting there.

AUDIOLOGY:
If you had to give a prize for the most intense, the loudest, most uncompromising, in-your-face band of the night, this lot win it hands down. A total ear-bleeding assault on the senses, this is thrash-core at a blistering high. Red hot and roaring, this, in a war, is the sort of thing you drop on the enemy to watch them surrender in minutes. Loud and brutal, there's no denying that this band, in their genre, are a cut above most.

MISSIN' A BIT:
Young trio makin a noise. Lack of experience told a bit at the start but as the set went on, so the confidence grew. A sor of modern day hardcore punk with vague echoes of late '70's punk in there too. The set arrangement seems sound, the songs dynamic and the playing growing in stature. Definitely a band with potential and one to watch in the future.

Click here for the review of the second of the Scottish finals of Emergenza's Battle of The Bands competition.

Click here for the CD reviews of most of the bands that appeared over the two finals -should be completed around end August