Due to my luck of catching every red light into the city, my first stop of the night is at The Zoo for a band called Metals. Upon arrival to The Zoo, I immediately notice the packed bar, and a completely empty floor in front of the stage. However, once Metals started, heads turned and attention was quickly diverted.  With a lead singer taking fashion tips from Lady Gaga, and electro hooks inspired by Peaches backed by chunky but catchy beats, their first song is very impressive.  Their second song takes a quick turn into dubstep territory, but it never fails to be catchy. It makes me sad that I can only stay for a bit; the Big Sound Live timetable is packed with great bands, and the distance between venues means that the short 20 or 30 minute sets by bands are cut short with travel.

As such, I left The Zoo to go to the Clubhouse for Oh Ye Denver Birds. However, after three false starts and 15 minutes of waiting after the start time, I decide to cut my losses and head to Rics Bar for Ruby Frost. It’s upbeat pop music with a dark edge from the rhythm section.

Once again, leaving early, I move over to the Bakery Stage to catch the end of The Cairos’ set.  I can’t say much more than has already been said about these guys; they rock, and they’re going far. They’ve got the most receptive crowd of the night so far.

From the Bakery Stage, it’s just a quick crossing of the street to get back to The Zoo to catch My Fiction. Having recently launched their album at the very same venue, they bang through the songs at a breakneck pace. The songs have a manic beat that simply doesn’t let up, equaled only by frontman Eric Robinson’s energy, grabbing the mic stand and running around the stage with it.  They’ve got solid beats and great songs; it’s not hard to imagine them going somewhere very fast with the reception they got tonight!

Closing out the night is recent Art vs Science support and Splendour in the Grass openers, Jinja Safari.  The two piece deliver the layered and intricate songs off of their debut EP with precision; it’s almost like the Arcade Fire with slightly less pompous grandeur. The EP launch tour starts soon; it’s worth checking out!

So that's it for day 1 of Big Sound 2010!  Tomorrow there'll be some more coverage of the conference and unofficial showcases, and don't forget to stay tuned to Twitter for live updates!