No one who was there will probably forget that shortly into Ha Ha Tonka’s Friday afternoon set at ACL Festival, it started raining in Austin for the first time in what seems like ages.

The rain didn’t account for all the cheers though, or the fact that by the time Ha Ha Tonka’s first ever ACL Festival set was over, what had been a modest crowd in front of one of the smaller stages had grown to overflow back and to the side of the stage.  For bands playing the smaller stages, ACL success can partially be measured by how many random people trying to run from one stage to the next get sucked in by the awesome music being made on stage.

But I get to claim that I was into them before they became “cool” at ACL Fest, having watched the awesome YouTube video for their song “Caney Mountain” and deciding the band needed to be on my list during the festival.

Ha Ha Tonka delivered on stage, showcasing a fun, upbeat rock sound with strong flavors of bluegrass and gospel.

“Did you see out bass player today? Did he not take his shirt off and was he not smoking on stage, even though there’s a smoking ban? We’re a rock band – we’re there,” said Brian Roberts, Ha Ha Tonka front man.

The band hails from Missouri and the Ozarks and sucks its influences from the region, and also the music they listened to growing up in rural middle America.

“I think, growing up in a very rural environment, a lot of country seeped in, but then as a teenager I got into REM – so let’s say 80s country, REM and Paul Simon. Just throw Paul Simon in,” Roberts said.

Roberts and two other band members grew up together in West Plains in rural Missouri, and the fourth band member joined up at Missouri State College. The band members are definitely approachable guys, who even offer to go grab the reporter interviewing them a beer before getting started with the interview. (I accepted.)

“The people (where I grew up), I think that they’re some of the best people in the world – hard working, good people. You don’t need to lock a door. People will help you out when you need it, good people,” Roberts said.

They also take their name from home – Ha Ha Tonka State Park in Missouri.

“We knew no other band would be using the name Ha Ha Tonka. Worst case scenario, people hated it, best case, whenever people asked about it, we could talk about the state park,” Roberts said.

Like many bands playing ACL Festival for the first time this year, Ha Ha Tonka has got a good reputation: they’ve played Lollapalooza, been reviewed on NPR and been featured on an episode of "No Reservations." So when do you finally feel like you’ve made it as a professional musician?

“That’s a tough term to apply to what we do, or what anybody does – it’s like saying ‘When are you a grown up?’ Do you ever feel you’re grown up? Do you ever feel like you made it? We definitely feel fortunate to do this for living, because it’s a great job,” Roberts said. “Hopefully we’ll see a gradual increase in our popularity and the people that know about us. We’d like to do this for a long time.”

Brian got to talking about the bands they were looking forward to catching at ACL, like Arcade Fire and Fleet Foxes, and threw in a plug for J. Rodey Walson and the Business, who were playing on Saturday.

“If you haven’t hear them, check them out, because they will be your find of the festival,” Roberts said.

I like them (check out this song), but sorry to say, I think Ha Ha Tonka is my find of the festival. But what can I say? I’m a sucker for that bluegrass rocker vibe.