New Jersey's Fight Amp threw the first punch with their blend of raw punk rock and noisy, abrasive metal. They were in many ways the perfect opening act – short, slamming and savage all at once. Theirs is lean, leering music, the kind that forces listeners into passion because it burns with so much of its own.

The militant drumming of "Dead is Dead" jumpstarted the night, its caustic riffs crushing like a toppling brick building. "Elbows Off," for its part, effortlessly battered the audience with rhythm section stomp and driving riffs so repetitive they hit like a shovel. "What a Drag" was anything but, the crowd fired up by its transition from acidic rock played at dirge speed to trampling thrasher.

Fight Amp wasn't all fury, however – "Bad Listener I" leapt out of amplifiers with its urgent but stabbing guitar melodies and the band's twisted sing-alongs. After this, "Lungs" provided the band's biggest hit with a pulverizing punk attack that careened into a breakdown so harsh it hit with the suddenness of traumatic news.

Thankfully, Zoroaster's metal was coated in warm but wooly amplifier fuzz that cheered the crowd considerably. Beginning with the trudge through droning riffs and ethereal guitar solos that is "D.N.R.," the band provided a mesmerizing set centered on spacing out.

"Odyssey," meanwhile, was a suitably epic journey through monk-like chants and the caress of weighty but gentle guitars. Soon after, "Old World" enveloped the audience with massive, hazy guitars and a chorus repeated like a Hindu mantra. Only once did the band rev their set into overdrive – the rumbling "Ancient Ones" – but fast or slow they put on a satisfying show.

Kylesa's performance met halfway between the mania and mellowness of the preceding acts. The quintet packed the stage like canned sardines, filling every inch with instruments ranging from keyboards to bongo drums. Their set list was similarly stuffed, much of the group's back catalog making its way into the short runtime.

Energy was the name of the game regardless of the tune played. "Hollow Severer" let loose the pounding grooves that carved Kylesa's niche while "Unknown Awareness" showed the band's more recent mix of shimmering melodies and muscular riffing. A sense of anxiety – another element of the group's sound – reared its head in the jittery guitar notes and galloping beats of "Cheating Synergy." Keyboard strains kicked off "Running Red," paving the way for frontwoman Laura Pleasants' smoky sing-song, tribal drumming and bludgeoning guitars.

Kylesa also displayed a penchant for psychedelic metal ala Zoroaster. "Tired Climb" began with guitars drenched in swirling distortion while "Only One" featured echoing percussion and warped, disorienting guitar notes. The group closed things with "Scapegoat," a nerve-wracked number heavy on whirling drums and booming riffs before performing a quadruple percussion solo that gradually dwindled into silence. It was a raucous finale, the kind that left listeners realizing what an awesome din they'd just dived into.

Fight Amp – www.myspace.com/fightamp

Zoroaster – www.myspace.com/thezoroaster