Biography

Radio Contact: Art Menius Radio
www.artmeniusradio.com
919-675-2787

Band Contact: Dale Huffman (828) 385-1077
therivercatsband@gmail.com
https://www.therivercats.com/

About the Band;
Although it’s hard to categorize Jessi & The River Cats into a single genre, their music sits somewhere inside the broad category of Americana. The band seamlessly weaves acoustic instrumentation into creative and interesting arrangements that blend rock, pop, and country influences with a hint of bluegrass. While the group itself is relatively new, the individual members are certainly not new to their craft. The band members are all veteran musicians, each having played hundreds of gigs while logging thousands of miles on the road playing shows in previous bands.

Jessica began singing professionally at age 16 as a member of the Crystal Coast Jamboree in Morehead City, NC. It was there that she met pedal steel and guitar player Clyde Mattocks. Clyde later started the country band “Without Further Ado” and asked Jessica to join him as lead vocalist. Jessica performed with “Without Further Ado” for 10 years. Jessica is now “the voice” of The River Cats and delivers a sweet, flawless vocal performance that is an absolute pleasure to listen to. In addition to singing, Jessica holds down a solid rhythm accompaniment on guitar. Her voice is perfectly complimented by the excellent musicianship of Blake Vance, Dale Huffman and Marshal Huffman. Blake is a multi-instrumentalist who plays whatever is needed - whether it be mandolin, baritone guitar, bass, or banjo. Although the majority of Blake’s musical experience has been in the traditional bluegrass world playing mandolin, he is well versed in many musical styles. Dale handles backing vocals and the primary lead guitar duties, bringing a lifetime of blues, rock and country influence to his unique style of acoustic guitar playing. Marshal is also a multi-instrumentalist and he lays down an excellent rhythmic foundation for “The River Cats” on bass and cajon. He also grabs a guitar occasionally and belts out a soulful lead vocal.

About the songs;

"Dance, Dance, Dance" (release date 8/16/2022)
"Dance, Dance, Dance" is a swinging, energetic tune that actually makes you want get up and dance! Lead guitarist Dale Huffman says he was sitting out on the porch jamming around when he came up with the opening riff. “I just kept jamming to that riff and improvising lead around some 9th chords until eventually I thought - this could be a cool song.” He says he then wrote the lyrics to fit the mood and energy of the song. The song is about a guy sitting at a bar, feeling blue because he caught his best friend messing around with his woman. Another friend who knows the situation is trying to convince him to get out on the floor and dance his blues away. Dale says “The song is great fun to play live and Blake and I sometimes swap leads back and forth several times before moving on to the final chorus”
Recorded at Crossroads Studios and produced by Tim Surrett, “Dance, Dance, Dance” is a great song that will get you grinnin’ and make you want to move!

"Blood on the Mountain" (release date 3/8/2022)
"Blood On The Mountain" is a ballad about a man and wife who were murdered in the 1950s near the place where Dale grew up. He had heard about the murders at an early age from older residents of the community. With most of these "old-timers" having passed on, Dale felt the need to write a song to preserve the memory. The result is "Blood on the Mountain" The song features Marshal on lead vocal with strong harmony vocals on the chorus by Jessica and Dale. Recorded at Crossroads Studios and produced by Tim Surrett of Balsam Range.

"Hook Line & Sinker" is a light-hearted, tongue-in-cheek comedy about a young woman who made a poor choice when selecting a husband. The song is up tempo and has an underlying acoustic rock riff that makes you want to dance. The song features Jessica on lead vocal with bluesy harmony vocals in the chorus compliments of Dale and Marshal. A Chuck Berry-esque lead break completes the song. Recorded at Crossroads Studios and produced by Tim Surrett of Balsam Range, "Hook Line and Sinker" is a great song that is sure to get your feet tapping and make you smile!