Punk is a big tent party.

One, two, three, four!

At eight o'clock the four members of Kansas City's The Unfinished stood under red lights on the Minibar stage. Attendance was sparse. Most of the patrons lurked in the club's dark shadows, though a boisterous minority had gathered at the edge of the low stage and were already directing unabashed positivity at vocalist Abigail Unfinished. Soon it was revealed that the pod represented Abigail's roller derby team. With her posse to back her up, Abigail was chatty. Just a casual night out. No big deal. But maybe it was.

The half-hour set that followed was a roller coaster. All the highs came in lean compositions where Abigail pushed her voice to its breaking point. The resulting rasp was everything in new cut "Side by Side." The ballsy, bouncing bass of Jon Sink and tight mid-tempo drumming of Jeff Anderson were superb when the act's tunes maintained this punch. The lows came from extended instrumental sections, overreaching guitar solos by Corey Dean, and outros that overstayed their welcome. These bloated compositions slowed the momentum, and the performances suffered. Thankfully the ride ended on a high with single "You Don't Know Me." This enthusiastic finale bested the studio version, elevating the single's strong melody with additional fury. The Unfinished is still new and figuring it out, but when tight songs meet high energy, the band is a joy to behold.

Eins, zwei, drei, vier!

Madman brought a different vibe to the room. The local quartet was not jovial or jocular or seemingly interested in the audience at all. Instead, the musicians came to do what they do, and boy did they do it. The band is made up of Ben Biersmith (vocals/guitar), Ben Summers (guitar), Stephen Snow (bass), and Chas Snyder (drums). Those are names familiar to Kansas City music fans – at least to those who favor heavier sounds. Biersmith is a screamer, though on this night his vocals were buried in the din he helped create. Normally this is where I'd pin a microgenre on the band, but with Madman it's just not possible. Crushing power is the act's only genre. Sometimes that manifested itself as vintage speed metal, sometimes as sludge, and sometimes as noise rock. The rhythm section pushed compositions. Snow was literally in the spotlight in the center of the stage. When there were guitar leads, they came from Summers' Rickenbacker. The rest of the time he joined Biersmith laying down thick riffs or exploding into his own noisy distractions. No one in the group had any interest in banter. The short five-song set made room for several new ones that will be on a new cassette released this summer. Make sure your stereo is prepared for Madman before you press play – it's going to be a lot louder than you think.

Hey! Ho! Let's go!

The Oxys were up next, but first there was a thorough soundcheck, a light that had to be moved, a wardrobe issue to resolve, and some technical difficulties to overcome. But then, at 9:55, the quintet really let loose. The project is fronted by vocalist "PunkRockPhil" Davis. He's a lifer, a committed performer, and sings much higher than his large frame would suggest. He formed the band with Jason "Ginchy" Kottwitz. Kottwitz grew up metal and somehow ended up playing guitar in later versions of Dead Boys and alongside icons like Sylvain Sylvain. The two must have bonded over a love of proto-punk's chaotic fury and theatricality, as the act continues that proud lineage. Of course, the small Minibar stage is not exactly conducive to antics. Rhythm guitarist "Genocide" was only able to do backbends by pushing bassist Michael Harpel off the stage and away from his microphone. That's crazy because she was about the same size as his mustache. Drummer Chris Alaniz was wedged in the corner with a drum kit and a computer that, in theory, delivered backing keyboard tracks even if they never reached my ears. Maybe I was just focused on all those hooky solos and sweet sweet backing vocals.

The quintet's twelve-song set spanned both of its albums, included a couple of tunes that I assume were new, and featured a cover of The Damned's "Melody Lee." All of it was delivered fast and fun by musicians going all out. Sometimes a band can overplay a small room, but The Oxys have figured out that you can't go wrong if you're sincere. After the set I slipped over to the merch table to thank Davis. Still sweating and panting, he gave me a strong handshake and flashed the warmest smile I've ever gotten from a stranger. Long live punk – in all its forms.