Mountain Fever Records has announced the signing of ClayBank to the label. The young North Carolina band will produce an album for them in 2018.
ClayBank has experienced a meteoric rise in the past year and a half, largely based on the powerful singing of mandolinist Zach Arnold. At only 17 years of age, Zach is a seasoned vocalist with a strong tenor voice and a smooth feel for contemporary bluegrass. Working the contest scene the past two years they developed a reputation for energy and style that has brought them to the attention of nearly everyone in bluegrass.
Arnold is joined by Jacob Greer on guitar, Tyler Thompson on banjo, and Gary Trivette on bass. The elder statesman of the band, Gary has performed with a number of groups in North Carolina over the years, and accepts his role as chaperone/stabilizing force in ClayBank.
“They like the same kind of driving bluegrass music that I do. It is strange to find people with that difference in age that enjoy the same music. As for the young men in the band, I can give them some of the history of bluegrass music, but they already know a lot about it. Our musical style can basically be found between 1980 and 1999 or so, influenced by Doyle Lawson’s original Quicksilver band.”
A new project for Mountain Fever is expected in May, featuring mostly original material written within the band. That’s something to watch for in 2018.
