Country-duo Sundy Best is coming to Gainesville for the first time and drummer Kris Bentley is sure they’ll fit right in.
“Northern Florida, you know, I think there’s a lot of hillbillies there just as there are where we live,” Bentley joked. “We fit in great.”
The Kentucky-based band will perform Sunday at the High Dive, located at 210 SW Second Ave., as part of its Salvation City Tour, the band’s biggest tour yet.
Doors open at 6 p.m. and tickets can be purchased at the door for $10 or in advance for $8 on ticketweb.com.
Local musicians Alan Stowell and CP Heaton will open the show along with the Trey Tucker Band.
Sundy Best, consisting of Nick Jamerson on guitar and vocals and Bentley on cajon and drum kit, recently added an electric guitar and keyboard player to its live show. The band has toured more than 300 dates in the past 18 months, selling out numerous shows this year.
“Each town and each show seems like it’s a brand new experience,” Bentley said.
The live set consists of music from the band’s December release, “Salvation City,” along with songs from its March 2014 release, “Bring Up The Sun.”
Bentley described the band’s style as combining elements of bluegrass and Appalachian Folk, infused with some hints of R&B.
“We’re like Baskin Robbins; there’s 32 flavors,” Bentley said.
Growing up in a small town in Kentucky, Jamerson and Bentley were involved in music at their church from an early age.
“We actually had a Christian rock band together in high school for a little bit,” Bentley said.
After high school, the longtime friends went off to college, where Bentley played basketball while Jamerson played football. It wasn’t until after college that Jamerson started playing guitar and singing around Kentucky. The two reunited to play after Jamerson messaged Bentley about adding some drums.
“We realized how much fun it was,” Bentley said. “It just felt right.”
After tossing around different ideas, the two finally settled on their band name due to church being a vital part of their upbringing.
“Music was a big part in our church and you wear your Sunday best,” Bentley said. “And where we’re from, we say ‘Sundy.’”
The band, which signed with its label in 2013, has already been featured on several prominent publications and holds a spot in Rolling Stone’s Best Country Albums of 2014. The band also held the title of CMT Listen Up! Artist of the month in November, and two of its singles are currently playing on Sirius XM’s country station The Highway.
The public has also paid close attention to the band’s YouTube channel, which has garnered more than 2 million views and has doubled since March 2014.
“It’s just really nice to get to do what you’ve always dreamed to do and just to make it a reality,” Bentley said. “That doesn’t always happen to everybody so we understand how fortunate and blessed we are.”
[A version of this story ran on page 9 on 5/28/15]
