Relive the fun

A giant mass of what looked like hipster-gangsters and train robbers kicked around dirt and dust Nov. 4-6 at this year's Fun Fun Fun Fest (FFFF).

Over 150 diverse and engaging bands performed for the bandana-clad concertgoers at FFFF's sixth annual gathering, located at Auditorium Shores this year. The festival showcased musicians from a manifold of genres and styles.

One of the most talked and tweeted about happenings that weekend was Ryan Gosling touring the festival, shooting scenes from his upcoming film "Lawless." He was seen dancing on the side stage for several artists' performances and even walking around the park "fighting" with co-star Rooney Mara.

The Sony Social Club tent offered gaming on several flat- screen TVs, each setup with PS3 consoles and the new interactive game "Everybody Dance." A Sony representative walked around, demonstrated the game and said players could record themselves playing and upload the videos to various social media. This game is definitely heading in the right trend direction with these new sharing options.

Mohawk, Beerland, The Parish, Beauty Bar and a few other venues hosted Fun Fun Fun Nites, presenting extra performances and disc jockey sets from big names like Passion Pit and Neon Indian.

On Sunday night, Gosling, Diplo and several other FFFF musicians made an appearance at Beauty Bar to close the festival and go out with a bang.

Here's the lowdown on the sounds and sights of many of the amazing bands that played.

Heartless Bastards

Lead singer Erika Wennerstrom's slow-burning, soulful vocals and the band's melodic, heavy blues-rock could be heard resonating blocks away from the venue. Wennerstrom exhibited incredible talent on her cream and gold Gibson guitar that perfectly matched the backbeats and strumming of her bandmates. The beautiful ‘crying eye' illustration on their kick drum made for a captivating centerpiece to the gorgeous downtown Austin skyline in the backdrop of the open out-door stage.

Pictureplane

The merging of edgy synthesizers and late 80s-style samples by Travis Egedy, the brain behind Pictureplane, reminds listeners of a more sensual and unusual era of music. Egedy sang over his trance-style mixes and was accompanied by two Lady Gaga-ish costumed dancers moving and locking in place eerily to the bumpin' beats. The heavy, punchy rhythms swayed most viewers into dancing and pulsing to retro, early-90s electro sound.

Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears

This Austin-centric, classic, blues-rock band's sound has a very ‘Chuck Berry' big band feel to it. The super enthusiastic rock ‘n' roll riffs, the over-the- top trumpet and saxophone players, and the 50s-esque girl screams at the climax of musical bridges all bring back a sense of timeless, waning blues. Black Joe Lewis is definitely a crowd pleaser, and evocates soulful voices like James Brown and Little Richard.

Matt Bearden

Austin-based comedian Matt Bearden is no stranger to awkward. He constantly crosses the line in his jokes, and is quite funny, but seems to swing and miss at who his audience is and what they will laugh at. He made self-proclaimed inappropriate jokes on topics ranging from Randy Savage "snapping into the Slim Jim of death" to the recently trendy and easy jabs the at the Occupy movements. He seemed less confident than usual and talked about the nature of his jokes a little too much, but ultimately finished with a hilarious edition of puppet karaoke.

Passion Pit

If you don't know the sweet story behind Passion Pit's formation by Michael Angelakos, – you're missing a key element to interpreting the super lovey-dovey lyrics behind most of his songs. The first group of tracks, which later became his "Chunk of Change" EP, were written by Angelakos as a Valentine's Day gift to his then girlfriend. The electro- indie-pop clashing of sounds and wicked good beats are inescapably groove-inducing, and his high pitched catchy vocals are pleasant to sing along to. Passion Pit has had some disappointing live sound mixing in the past, but this performance was a spectacular display of lights and sounds.