Sideline’s new single is a fast-paced, Blues-Rock inspired ballad

Dynamic Bluegrass super group Sidelinehas developed from an offseason project band to one that has become a tour de force.

Since the 2018 release of their critically acclaimed album, Front and Center — which featured the #1 most played song of 2018, “Thunder Dan” — Sideline has climbed to the top of their ever-growing and evolving field, with their energetic live performances and refined musical prowess. Now, this forward-looking powerhouse of award-winning musicians teases an upcoming album with a high-octane, Southern-Grass-Jam single for the summer, “Crash Course in the Blues.”

With guitarist Skip Cherryholmes on lead vocals, Sideline takes the early 90’s Steve Wariner Country hit and transforms it into a Southern Blues-Rock inspired acoustic opus. Allman Brothers-style twin guitar leads by Cherryholmes and Troy Boonealong with arresting solos by guest mandolinist Aaron Ramsey, bass breakdowns by Jason Moore, and the athletic fiddle of Daniel Greeson, show a band pushing the edge at the forefront of their genre. With rhythm guitar by Bailey Coe and vocal harmonies from the group’s banjo player, Steve Dilling, “Crash Course in the Blues” pulses with the drive of the speeding foreign car on the freeways of L.A. described in the lyrics. The imagery of the country boy out of his element in the big city and his resulting fate, makes for a classic tale of heartbreak as a fast-paced, Blues-Rock ballad.

At a time when acoustic music is expanding as a result of multi-genre influences, Sideline is a seasoned group that embraces both the progressive side and the traditional roots of American music. With high energy, the band delivers a perfected foundation of timing, tone and flat picking finesse.

Dilling talks about choosing “Crash Course in the Blues,” saying, “I had been searching a long time to find a song to feature Skip and Troy on the twin guitar work, and I remembered this great Steve Wariner song from many years ago. It’s bluesy and allows for the band to really spread out and jam. It has live energy in this recorded version, but it’s still tight and strong.”

Listen to “Crash Course In The Blues”HERE About Sideline
Sideline is a pedigreed six-piece powerhouse whose style has set the pace in Bluegrass for over two decades. Founders Steve Dilling, Skip Cherryholmes and Jason Moore can all claim their own historical significance to the genre as members of highly awarded groups, multiple Grand Ole Opry appearances and years of national and international touring.

What started as a side project for the seasoned players soon moved to the front and center as the three were joined by talents of Bailey Coe; guitar, Troy Boone; mandolin, and Daniel Greeson; fiddle, and began to record and release albums in earnest.

To listen to Sideline reminds the fan of why so many people fall in love with Bluegrass in the first place; pulse-pounding drive, songs sung from the heart, perfected timing and dynamics as well as a visceral emotion in the rendering. A band that was started as an off-season fun experiment has become a full-time dream team of players and singers.

The band, recorded or live, move dynamically from well chosen, hard-hitting neo-traditional covers of classic songs to new material curated by a band with a perfect sense of who they are and what they have to say. Combine all this with their on-stage energy and finesse as well as their powerful and affecting harmonies, and you have the embodiment of the North Carolina Bluegrass sound. Sideline has released 3 national projects and records for the highly awarded Mountain Home Music Company based near Asheville, NC.

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