The few, the proud: Indie Fest crowd members.

That I-hope-no-one-saw-me-accidentally-spit moment? I caught Ataris' front man, Kris Roe, right in the middle of it. Because I was so close to the stage that I could see he played his right-handed guitar lefty so that the high E was the top string. When he got really pumped about a song, his forehead wrinkled into three folds of skin. The crows feet around his eyes gentled his face and gave him character, so I believed him when he sang out that he wanted to remedy his relationship with the child he fathered at age 19.

Roe tuned his own guitar last night at the Indie Fest at Pepsi Amphitheater. No roadie. No stagehand. He did it all. When a woman in the small crowd shushed during an admittedly awkward silence in a song break, he laughed and thanked us for being a more polite crowd that the Scottsdale Bar crew he played for last week.

Even though Roe is from Indiana, he has the Arizona Flag tattooed on his left arm. His band, the Ataris, is recording a new album in Mesa with Bob Hoag. A lot of the songs last night were from this new album. As he sang, I had conflicting emotions. I was proud that a talent like Roe claimed Arizona as temporary-home and inspiration, nostalgic as his music speaks to a variety of experiences I've had, almost had, or want to have, and saddened that so few people were at the amphitheater supporting this last minute headliner.

The small crowd didn't detract from the atmosphere though; if anything, it added to it. It was like Roe was telling me a secret. Like he traveled from the desert to the mountains to play just for me. The show had all the intimacy of a coffee shop open-mic and all the awe of an arena concert. And Roe was one of many acts.

The show goes on all day at the Pepsi Amphitheater at Fort Tuthill Park. You've already missed some great bands today, so hurry over! Headlining acts like Lit, California Liar, and Flagstaff local band Fight the Quiet are sure to pack all the punch that last's night show did. Click here for a full line-up. Tickets are $14 dollars at the door. Be there, or be square.