Biography

Founded in late 2012, Big Virginia Sky is a Bluegrass-inspired Americana group that focuses on instrumental improvisation and original music in the Americana/Alt. Country genre with the incorportion of bluegrass-inspired instrumental breaks. The group has been referred to as a hybrid of Americana and Country in previous reviews, and recently was showcased as one of IBMA's featured artists in 2015 during the Raleigh, NC convention.

The band includes award-winning mandolin player, Scott Slay, as well as singer-songwriter and Cole Clark sponsored guitar player, James Adkins. The rhythm section consists of Norfolk, VA natives and brothers, Dale and Steve Lazar, who come in on drums/percussion and upright bass. The group has the power of 5-time IBMA Banjo Player of the Year and Virginia Music Hall of Famer, Sammy Shelor to round out the album's mix of country/folk/pop and bluegrass tunes.

In Fall, 2015, the album was featured on the Independent Spotlight:

"Things remain fresh, and often infectiously catchy, consistently pulling you back into the band’s offering,,,I rarely talk in absolutes; it’s a practice someone in my profession needs to be wary of. I can say, though, that ‘Big Virginia Sky’ is the very best independent bluegrass effort of 2015 so far. (That’s come across my desk, anyway.) The album is absolutely terrific - well performed, well written, and always fun. It’s an experience you need to immerse yourself in if you have any appreciation for country, bluegrass, blues, or Americana in general."

For full bio: http://www.bigvirginiasky.com/bio/