FRIDAY, FEB. 20

CHRIS KNIGHT / SASHA COLETTE & THE MAGNOLIAS

THE V-CLUB

TIME: 9 P.M.

ADMISSION: $13

ARTIST: Chris Knight

GENRE: Country / Rock

LOCATION: Slaughters, Kentucky

Country music artist Chris Knight is bringing his “blunt honesty,” “elegiac truths,” and “raw poetry” to Huntington.

Knight has been in the music industry for 15 years, producing seven albums and attracting a wide fan base.

He is performing his latest album Little Victories (September 2012), his first album since 2008.

Knight is not known for being outspoken, and he takes his time creating new material and producing the music best suited for his style.

“I don’t ever get in a big rush about things,” Knight says. “I can tour pretty good on what I got. I took my time, like I always do — write a song every now and then. I don’t like to talk about politics, but I do write what I’m thinking about.”

Over the years in the music industry, Knight has been able to hold his own and knows how lucky he is to be a part of the music world.

“I’ve learned that I’m pretty lucky to do what I do and make a living at it,” Knight said.

ARTIST: Sasha Colette & the Magnolias

GENRE: Folk / Indie

LOCATION: Olive Hill, Kentucky

Based on the Kentucky/West Virginia border, Sasha Colette is a skilled lyricist with haunting vocals.

Her folk/indie style brings a Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Nora Jones, Adele, Ryan Adams and Neko Case feel to the region.

Teaming up with her once full-time band The Magnolias, Sasha will be taking the stage at the V-Club once again.

SATURDAY, FEB. 21

JEREMY MCCOMB / THE JORDAN REEVES BAND

THE V-CLUB

TIME: 10 P.M.

ADMISSION: $8

ARTIST: Jeremy McComb

GENRE: Country

LOCATION: Nashville, Tennessee

Jeremy McComb makes his first appearance at the V-Club in Huntington during his 2015 FM Tour.

Based in Nashville, Tennessee, McComb has spent the last 15 years following his dream to becoming a powerhouse musician.

McComb started singing and playing guitar at 8-years-old in his home state of Idaho, drawing his musical inspirations from the singer songwriters he looked up to as a child.

“Growing up I listened to a lot of singer-songwriters like Jim Croce, Willy Nelson and Marshall Tucker Band,” McComb said. “When I got older it turned into Steve Earle and Shawn Mullins, guys that were story tellers.”

Finding a place in the music industry is no easy task, taking the risks necessary to succeed, McComb has opened the door for himself as a country music artist.

“The hardest part? Oh I don’t know,” McComb said. “Probably getting into it, its kind of tough nut to crack, not only a lot of preparation comes into being ready to take opportunities when they present themselves, but being able to be ready and kind of know when to jump.”

He said the easier side of the music industry is getting to interact and connect with the fans following the music.

“You write a song in a little room 2000 miles away from where you are at, and a few months or a year or two later you’re playing a show in a room full of people that know it,” McComb said. “So, I think for me connecting with people and building relationships and things like that are probably the most rewarding things for me.”

McComb has released two fully fan-funded projects, showing the powerful fan base of the rising star and the reaction to his music.

“It’s been great,” McComb said. “Every year it gets a little bigger and every year we add more shows. We were on the road 100 days last year and this year we’re looking to be on the road from 120 to 150. Every year you see it grow. You see the markets we’ve been in where we started off there six to seven years ago with 35 people and now were playing to crowds of 4,000. It’s one of those things, where like in Huntington, we’ve been growing that market. This is our first time at the V-Club, and it’s something I’m really proud of, to know where we started three to four years ago when we had a hand full of people over to a pal’s house.”

McComb’s touring resume is far from small. He managed Larry the Cable Guy’s tour as he began his rise to the comedy scene. The experience that brought McComb was knowledge of the touring industry from the behind the scenes perspective.

“Well I learned a lot about how major tours work,” McComb said. “I started with Larry the Cable Guy when he was just an opening act and left when he was a massive superstar, headliner, doing Pixar shows. So I got to see front to back how to go from being an opener to being a huge star and seeing how those tours work and how things are supposed to work. Being able to watch somebody rise that way was a huge leg up. Also being able to write those soundtracks and being able to be a part of that comedy history that they made obviously gave me leg up when it came to record deals and knowing how to approach the road and touring.”

McComb also wrote on the Grammy nominated soundtrack for The Blue Collar Comedy Tour Rides Again.

McComb said being on the road himself is in his blood. He couldn’t see himself anywhere else but working non-stop on his music and playing it for his fans.

ARTIST: The Jordan Reeves Band

GENRE: Country / Rock

LOCATION: Huntington, West Virginia

The Jordan Reeves Band is a Huntington-based country band comprised of lead vocalist Jordan Reeves, drummer Andrew Cline and bassist Zakk Dickerson.

According to the reverbnation website, they are a “few ole country boys from Wayne, West Virginia,” giving high-energy performances to complement their country music style.

They have played at the V-Club numerous times and are back again to accompany Jeremy McComb.

Kelsie Lively can be contacted at [email protected].