If you were expecting to hear about a festival in the desert being hot, so were we. However, we were definitely surprised as M3F greeted us with sideways rain and chilly winds!

The website had originally said umbrellas were not allowed, leaving many who showed up early unprepared for the rain. The downpour left festivalgoers scrambling for cover, with bathrooms and the business and arcade tents providing the only shelter.

Despite weather apps predicting the rain would die down early, the rain would end up following us around the entire day.

However, the rain did not ruin attendees spirits, as whatever outfits they originally had planned were now accompanied by jackets and ponchos!

As one of the first performances of the day, alice.km’s DJ set of ethereal dance music kept spirits high, proving that a little rain could not stop the festivalgoers from dancing their hearts out.

The young band, late night drive home from El Paso, Texas, brought the energy to the miserably cold concert goers, giving them an escape from the weather with their great music.

I had the opportunity to talk to some of singer Ricky Montgomery's fans before he performed, and they came from all over the country to see him. From just the people I interviewed, fans had traveled from Florida, Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin and California to see his one-hour M3F performance, as the first stop of his “Tiny Tour”!

When asked what makes her a fan of Montgomery, Emma Akalaitis said, “I love the community that he has created and all the people that he has brought me to.”

Montgomery follower Miranda Young said, “He is not afraid to speak his mind, and I really admire that in a celebrity–A famous person that will stand for what they believe in, even with their millions of followers.”

Superfan Kylee Robinson said, “I like that he takes the time with his fans to realize the things we do. He has always kind of, noticed, you know?”

The rain later brought mud, which ended up causing some trouble. The mud left a big puddle, and the festival workers closed off the right side of the Vista stage until around 6:15 p.m. When  the workers decided to remove the caution tape, fans were given the opportunity to get up as close as they wanted to, regardless of the mud. This decision came in time for singer Ricky Montgomery’s performance.

Montgomery’s set, which was supposed to start at 5:30 p.m., started 55 minutes late due to “technical issues.” M3F did not allow him to play his full set as they had a tightly packed schedule. Montgomery and his guitarist Eliza Petrosyan worked with what they had and quickly played three songs that the audience requested with the little time they were given.

After his three songs, Montgomery came down to meet and talk to his fans.

I spoke to Ricky Mongomery fans about his set getting cut, and fan Robin Ruth said, “I'm a little bit disappointed by the lack of songs, but we got three. It would be nice if M3F could have moved Ricky to another stage to have him do an acoustic set, as he did an acoustic set here, but it's okay. We'll survive.”

Fan Natalie Moore said, “It wasn't his fault, it was just technical issues, but I feel M3F could have done something way better. ”

I asked Montgomery his thoughts on how his set played out and he said, “I’m sorry. We’ll get 'em next time.”

Next came Canadian indie pop band Alvvays, and they did not disappoint! Lead singer Molly Rankin said the band came to Arizona expecting to escape the Canadian weather, but it looks like they brought the weather with them! They performed some of their hit songs, including “Dreams Tonite,” “Archie, Marry Me” and “Easy on Your Own?,” which left the crowd singing and dancing as the music filled the air.

LCD Soundsystem delivered an unforgettable performance to wrap up the night. The electronic rock band had a great time performing hits, including “All My Friends” and “Dance Yrself Clean.” Their set was from 9:35 p.m. to 10:50 p.m., and they left the crowd fully immersed and pumped for day two of M3F.