Fun Fun Fun Fest brings out city's best

Music flooded the heart of downtown Austin on Nov. 8-9 as nearly 100 of the world's premiere independent rock, punk, hip hop, DJ, and comic acts performed in the third annual Fun Fun Fun Fest at Waterloo Park.

The Northeast was well represented as Brooklyn's The National and Connecticut's Clap Your Hands Say Yeah headlined the main stage, while Philadelphia's satirical punk band Dead Milkmen reunited to play their first show in four years. West-coast flavor was the soundtrack to some of the dance parties as California's DJ Z-Trip, Frankie Chan, and Hawnay Troof electrified the north end of Waterloo Park.

But what local promoter Transmission Entertainment set out to accomplish was to bring some of the best music, food, and businesses out of Austin to the festival.

Octopus Project performed a boldly experimental set with a number of different instruments including synthesizers and a theremin, cutting tracks off of their entire catalogue including their most recent LP, "Hello, Avalanche."

Garage-soul band Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears played a blistering midday set on the main stage without being negatively affected in any way by the unrelenting sun. Austin's Ume, Till We're Blue Or Destroy, Born to Lose, Brownout!, the Ugly Beats, and Grupo Fantasma also played throughout the day.

Fun Fun Fun Fest differs from other festivals in many ways. Coined the "anti-festival" because of its intimate stages, cool weather, smaller crowds, and emphasis on independent talent, the festival also hosted some of the best local businesses including Spider House and Rudy's BBQ, and fans were able to get haircuts from Bird's Barbershop.

Sumo-wrestling and a skate ramp provided other forms of entertainment, and local art and clothing boutiques in addition to inexpensive band merchandise filled the center of the park.

Two tiers of ticket prices targeted students, as attendees with a valid student ID paid $9 less than the regular ticket price.

The extra money was advantageous as drinks, food, water, and snowies became essential in the daytime heat, but as the sun set at around 6 p.m., the close proximity to downtown parking was even more beneficial. Wristbands guaranteed in-and-out access, and festival-goers could walk to their cars to retrieve sweaters as the weather cooled down.