19th Georgia National Fair October 2-12, 2008

JASON ALDEAN
www.jasonaldean.com
Macon native Jason Aldean doesn't have to think long when asked about his top game-changing moment in 2006. We were playing a little sold-out club in Portland, Oregon, just an acoustic show, when we went into `Hicktown' and the place just went crazy. That was the first time I got the feeling that we had a hit, says Aldean. A year later the whole career thing looked better than ever. Aldean broke through a crowded country field to capture the 2007 ACM’s Top New Male Vocalist and earned a gold album just 12 weeks after his debut’s release. Why has Jason been able to connect with so many people so fast? He calls his music aggressive country." It’s no surprise his radio success is a desire to commune with his crowd and make a party happen wherever he and his band go. And, he knows his fans. He sees them most every night on a stage somewhere, and more often now he is being recognized in the streets and in restaurants.

LUKE BRYAN
www.lukebryan.com
Listen to Leesburg native Luke Bryan talk, and the natural twang in his voice tells you he’s from as deep into the rural south as a young man can be. Listen to him sing and the true-as-dirt details tell you he writes about who he is and what he knows. He’s a straight-up, down-home country boy and his music makes that as clear as a sunny day on his family’s peanut farm. Bryan says sometimes even his friends in Nashville laugh at how country he is. After graduation and supported by his family, he moved to Nashville in 2001. Within two months, he had signed a publishing deal. This young man knows what a country audience likes and he gives it to them.

38 SPECIAL with MOLLY HATCHET
October 5, 4:00 p.m., $20.00*
http://www.38special.com

After more than three decades together, 38 Special is still playing more than 100 shows per year. And at everyone, thousands of audience members are completely blindsided by the power and muscle of the band’s performance. “When we come out, people are like, ‘Whoa! It’s like a freight train rolling over them,’ ” says vocalist/guitarist Don Barnes. While most associate the group with its arena-rock, ‘80s pop smashes, these days the band’s harder edge is what is immediately noticeable. Barnes says it’s all about maintaining the intensity they deliver in their live shows.

MOLLY HATCHET
http://www.mollyhatchet.com/

In 2003, the band celebrated its 25th anniversary with a double live album “Locked and Loaded.” After 5 years of touring, it was time to release an album that in the band’s tradition goes back to the roots of straight forward Southern rock and roll. The album “Warrior of the Rainbow Bridge” was recorded in the mountain tops of Bavaria. Rest assured, Molly Hatchet is a band that after more than 30 years is always working hard, playing fast, living tough, and still “Flirtin’ with Disaster!”

THREE DAYS GRACE with MODERN SKIRTS
October 11, 7:30 p.m., $25.00*
http://www.threedaysgrace.com/

When Three Days Grace emerged, they had a heavy, highly emotional album in hand, One-X. The album is rife with anguish-fueled vocals, heavy beats, and rough chords. Backed by the thunderous rhythm section of Neil Sanderson on drums and Brad Walst on bass, and the thrashing and urgent riffs of Barry Stock on guitar, One-X is a roller coaster ride through lead vocals and guitarist, Adam Gontier’s psyche. Intensely honest, Gontier leaves nothing out.

MODERN SKIRTS
http://www.modernskirts.com/

For the Athens, Georgia-based power pop quartet Modern Skirts, deciding to dip into their resources and purchase an upright piano for $75 was what ultimately led the band into a new musical direction. In the two years since that purchase, they have gone from young pop upstarts to battle-tested veterans, amassing a dedicated following based on their ironclad live performances. They create an infectious pop that gives a nod to groups like the Talking Heads and the Beach Boys without actually copying them. And people have taken notice. Since winning several awards, the Modern Skirts seem poised to become Athens’ latest breakout band.

SUGARLAND with ZAC BROWN BAND
October 12, 7:30 p.m., $30.00*
http://www.sugarlandfan.com/

Imagine this: In an Atlanta Starbucks, Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush write their dreams on a napkin.

1. Balance being in a band and having a family.
2. Get a Grammy nomination.
3. Sell a million records.

ZAC BROWN BAND
http://www.zacbrownband.com/

When you first hear Atlanta, Georgia’s, Zac Brown, you get the infallible feeling that you’ve just encountered someone very special. He is a 20-something year old classic songwriter with an amazing voice and a genuine personality. He has such a powerful stage presence, that he not only invites, but compels his audience to participate! The eleventh of 12 children, Zac played in bars outside Atlanta with an arsenal of 1,000 cover songs. He would challenge his audience to stump him with a request for a song he didn’t know.