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Kristopher Lee Roe
Background information
Born	January 12, 1977 (1977-01-12) (age 33)
Origin	Anderson, Indiana, United States
Genres	Pop punk, Punk rock, Alternative rock, Emo
Occupations	Musician, Singer-songwriter, Producer
Instruments	Vocals, Guitar, Moog synthesizer
Labels	Isola Recordings, Columbia, Kung Fu, Fat Wreck
Associated acts	The Ataris

Kristopher Lee Roe (born January 12, 1977 in Anderson, Indiana) is the singer and guitarist for pop punk band The Ataris who formed in 1995. The Ataris released their fifth full length album Welcome the Night on February 20, 2007 on the band's own imprint Isola Recordings through the Sanctuary Group.

Career

Roe discovered Israeli punk rock band Useless ID. After the band's music caught his attention, he invited them to record a split CD with the Ataris, resulting in 2000's Let it Burn. The split CD earned Useless ID a record contract on Kung Fu Records.

Handedness

Roe plays guitar left-handed and is known for playing an upside-down, right-handed Les Paul, which many wrongly believe is similar to a style made famous by guitarist Jimi Hendrix. Hendrix actually strung the guitar to be correct for a left-handed guitarist, whereas Roe leaves the strings upside down. Roe is right-handed.

Influences

Roe cites Douglas Coupland, Nick Hornby, Irvine Welsh and Charles Bukowski, as influences. Says Roe: "In a lot of my lyrics, I like to encode a lot of hidden messages... I like our audience to read into things. Writing should be very in depth, very detailed. Every essence of the moment should be described."

Photography

Roe has taken many of the photographs in the Ataris' records. He hopes to publish a book of his photographs in the near future.

Personal life

Roe moved back to Anderson after spending time in Los Angeles, California, and touring in support of "So Long, Astoria". He has one daughter, Starla; the songs "1*15*96" and "The Saddest Song" are dedicated to her.

Kris Roe (self-portrait)

External links

• Kristopher Roe Photography Myspace
• Kris Roe on Answers.com

References

From Wikiquote

Kristpher Roe

Kristpher Roe is the main lyricist and singer from the american indie band The Ataris.

-I don't want to love you, but it's something that I love to do. Bite My Tongue

-There's a lot on my mind, so I guess I'll just take it one thing at the time, still sometimes I can't help but wonder why? "Make It Last"

-you're not the only one that's tried to make a coal into a diamond. "Clara"

-Just cause things aren't what they seem, it doesn't mean you shouldn't dream, just don't get your hopes too high, cause once things don't turn out right, your world comes crashing dow. "In Spite of the World"

-Life is, only as good as the memoires we make. "So Long, Astoria"

-So long, Astoria I've found a map to buried treasure and even if we come home empty handed, we'll still have our stories of battle scars, pirate ships and wounded hearts, broken bones and all the best of friendships... "So Long, Astoria"

-When this hourglass has filtered out it's final grain of sand, I'll raise my glass to the memories we made.. "So Long, Astoria"

-If heaven's so wonderful, then why are we so afraid of dying young? We are dying young... "Welcome the Night"

-Maybe I'll greet sunlight after all, I'm sorry... "Act 5: Scene IV- So It Ends Like It Began"

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