Night 2 of Genderfest (which was really Night 1 due to a weather cancellation) was very much a no-frills experience. It was quite literally garage rock, enclosed in a cinderblock carport replete with graffiti art. The bands challenged the audience to stay, despite the bitter cold and nonexistent booze.

More so than any other show I've seen, Friday's line up seemed to be arranged in a hierarchy based solely on musical proficiency. The opening band (the PoCliticals; no, that's not a typo) was comprised of high school sophomores playing their first gig, but their pixie-punk spunk somewhat made up for their black-clad novice performance. Another opening-night band (the Destroyer Crew, from PA) put on an unflinchingly courageous show in the face of what I'm hoping were technical difficulties and not a part of the act (feedback galore). Their dueling female vocalists balanced the cacophony well with a screechy falsetto and low tenor.

Worth the trouble of a frozen posterior, Philly-based Kablammo is a band with a percussion-led, hard-edged sound that's refreshingly rife with talent and timeliness. But, the highlight of the evening was by far the thunder of Proteus, who put an energetic and positive spin on songs with dismal topics that included teenaged prostitution and body dismorphic disorder.

The final night of the festival was kicked off by the Materials and their strangely charismatic vocalist who is reminiscent of Fred Schneider in more ways than one. Their set included a pseudo-vaudevillian floorshow.

North Carolina's Warbomb quickly became my Genderfest darlings as excellent guitar riffs and contrasting male/female vocals combined sublimely with their diversity of musical styles. Saturday at the Supreme Imperial offered a softer mood and more variety in technique and approach than the first night. (Also, the atmosphere was more hospitable - still freezing, but with ample room and drinks!)

No band illustrated this divergence from the first show's spectacle more than the sweet-hearted Weeds from Philly (theweedsmusic.org). Couched in the distant and bleak vein of the Cowboy Junkies and Mazzy Star, The Weeds were just what Genderfest needed - a nostalgic side (that's right, they weren't touring with Mirah all season just because of nepotism).

Local acts are a staple of Genderfest, so hopefully you'll have the chance to experience the ear candy of Wax & Wane, Proteus, and The Materials for a long time to come. But Genderfest also offers Baltimore rare nonnative shows like the "chamber-rock experiment" of Bonfire Madigan (killrockstars.com/bands/madigan/).

Besides the novel mélange of cultures and genders, the festival's approach of inclusion extends to music genres, which is the real appeal. Genderfest captures the latest trend in music that redefines cool by approaching it from a true outsider's perspective.

Molly O’Donnell