For the record, Neon Reverb’s opening night wrapped up at 12:59 a.m. at the Bunkhouse on Friday, notable considering past editions of the Downtown music festival often had two or three acts still waiting in the wings at that hour.

Efficiency, thy name is Reverb? Let’s not get carried away. The multi-venue gathering maintained some of its gritty, DIY identity on Thursday, as organizers and volunteers explained to weekend ticket-holders that wristbands had yet to arrive but would probably show up today. I didn’t catch anyone complaining. Along with a chance to soak up sounds new and familiar, Neon Reverb has always been a gracious scene get-together, and night one seemed like exactly that again.

“We’re home,” whispered scene mainstay Donald Hickey—whose Neon Reverb radio show on KUNV-FM took its name from the fest—as we passed inside the Bunkhouse, and indeed Reverb’s kickoff felt comfy and warm, as musicians (those on the six-act bill and many who were not) and supporters caught up between sets around the bar and within the venue’s expanded outdoor corral. And inside the Bunkhouse itself, we were reminded how much has changed since Reverb’s last go-round, in 2013, as the upgraded sound system supported sonics in a way previously inconceivable.

Jackson Wilcox, whose A Crowd of Small Adventures were Reverb regulars, got edition No. 11 started with a six-song solo acoustic set that included oldie “Bone City," 2014 single “Ruby Rose” and two new tearjerkers, “Diamonds” and “Belle,” the latter about his childhood dog. Wilcox said he has also signed on to open for returning Las Vegas-bred Nashville songwriter Mark Huff on March 31, also at the Bunkhouse.

From there, styles shifted wildly. The Aquadolls brought a synthy SoCal party vibe to the second slot, encouraging their smallish crowd to get moving with limited success. And then Vegas five-piece Moonboots swung the pendulum to rock, delivering a slab of fun and slightly familiar (even for those of us catching them for the first time) tunes influenced by ’90s alt giants.

Next up: LA quintet Babes—a trio of siblings (two brothers and their sister), along with two old friends—specializing in retro doo-wop melodies drenched in dreamy layers of sound. For me, night one’s most interesting festival find. And then came the headliners, LA trio La Sera, featuring ex-Vivian Girls bassist Katy Goodman. Like her previous band, La Sera toggles between breezy surf-pop and noisy fuzz-rock, and for their first Vegas performance the three musicians focused on the latter, a good choice as the clock crept up on midnight. “Thank you Neon Reverb,” Goodman said before descending from the stage to play her instrument among the audience—old-Bunkhouse-style—to cap off a quality 40-minute set. “I’m pretty new to neon, but I love reverb.”

With a solid crowd still in place, local anchors Rusty Maples finished it off, covering David Bowie (“Five Years”) and TV on the Radio (“Staring at the Sun”) and previewing their own upcoming full-length. Rusty, which is preparing to head to South by Southwest for an official showcase and four other gigs, exudes the kind of live confidence at this point that speaks of the many miles the quartet has logged on tour in recent years.

A heads-up for festival-goers planning to arrive early for one of tonight’s six Reverb shows: Fremont and several surrounding streets were closed Thursday for the Mint 400 race and will be again tonight until 8 p.m., so plan out your route and parking accordingly.