FREE Sounds of Summer Concert featuring Simerson Hill
{Simerson Hill by Brooke Maners/Davidson Local}
The Sounds of Summer music event, hosted by the Lexington area Chamber of Commerce, is scheduled for August 14 at the Breeden Insurance Amphitheater in Lexington. Gates open to the public at 3:00 p.m. at the main event entrance on E. 3rd Ave. The event will feature live music from four phenomenal bands, adult beverages and a variety of food truck vendors. Rain or shine, this highly-anticipated event is sure to be one of Lexington’s biggest, and best, music events of the summer. Best of all, it’s absolutely FREE!
Local music fans, you’re not going to want to miss this, so mark your calendar and save the date. The stellar lineup includes Kids in America, Ross Coppley, Trial by Fire and Simerson Hill.
Among the incredibly-talented performers expected to take the stage and mentioned above is “Simerson Hill.” A local blues/rock band, from the small community of Churchland in Davidson County, they guarantee to bring a larger-than-life performance! Their style of music in comparison to other well-known artists? “We don’t really like comparing ourselves, but if we were forced to, we’d probably say Tyler Childers mixed with the Black Keys.”
The band consists of four members - Chandis Lilly, 32, lead guitarist, Brandon Davis, 38, drummer, Bryan Thompson, 38, rhythm guitarist and vocalist, and Michael Perkins, 33, who says he “slappa da’ bass.”
Simerson Hill’s name is based on the well-known road in Churchland and is near to where the band practices. But, really, it’s much more than just a road according to Churchland natives. It’s a landmark and massive hill where several generations of youth have and continue to grow up, hanging out with friends, riding their bikes down, four-wheeling and sledding in the winter and more. Band members explain, “It has pretty much played a lifelong role in several of the members’ lives and childhoods. As a matter of fact, Lilly and Davis have known each other since childhood, and both grew up near the hill.” They share that they have always talked about playing music together. However, due to both always being in other bands, it just never worked out before now.
Although very few good things have come out of the pandemic, Simerson Hill made the best of it. Thompson and Lilly were previously in a band (Lilly Brothers) together. Davis played with Zack Burick, a local country singer and Perkins was the bass player in that band as well. During the pandemic, things slowed down for the Lilly Brothers, as it did for most, and they eventually decided to call it quits. That’s when Lilly called Davis to form a group with him and Thompson. Davis then told the others about Perkins, and Simerson Hill came to be!
All of these musicians have years of music experience and impressive backgrounds. Thompson said he has played with the Gin Blossoms and Edwin McCain in the past. Lilly shared one of his most memorable moments in his music career was to be given the opportunity to play a set with Artimus Pyle, the drummer from Lynyrd Skynyrd. Davis recalls some of his most favorite music memories, such as performing at “the Warped Tour” in Charlotte and opening for bands like Mushroomhead, Dope, Nothingface and Soulfly when he played metal music. In his country days, he has opened for artists such as Tracy Lawrence, Big & Rich, Chris Lane, Tyler Farr and others. Perkins offered, “Most notably for me, was a four-year stint touring with Tim Elliott.” All have performed with many other local bands and artists throughout their music careers. A few to mention being the Lilly Brothers, TJ Harris and Morgan Keene (who is now a singer for the local band, Jukebox Rehab.) It goes without saying, this group is loaded with diversity, experience and talent, making them a must-see performance!
Diving into the members’ love of music and their inspirations, Davis began playing drums at five-years-old! He laughs adding, “My first drum set had the Muppet Babies on it!” He continues, “Watching my dad play when I was young was when I first fell in love with playing. At the time I didn’t think I was being influenced and he didn’t either, but I was. I used to think it was so cool watching him play. At 17, I went to see a legendary local metal band named ‘Swift’ play. I was HOOKED from there. The energy was INSANE and I wanted that from that point.” Perkins said, “I’ve been performing and singing since I was five-years-old. Back then I wanted to be a country singer. That’s obviously changed a little bit now, but nonetheless, performing music and entertaining people is the number one thing I’ve ever wanted to do. It has brought me more joy and blessings than one man could ever ask for.” Lilly began playing guitar at 12 and recalls, “Growing up in a family that appreciated music, I remember riding around with my dad and jamming out to Johnny Winter, Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan and just getting chills listening to the guitar riffs.” Thompson says for him, he received his first guitar at eight, and it’s the rush of performing in front of people and the constant urge to be better that inspires him. It's safe to say, music runs deep and naturally to all four members who admit the music passion started early in all of their childhoods.
Want to know more of what can be expected from the band at the Sounds of Summer event? When it comes to their current shows and music, what are some of their most requested cover songs? Davis chuckles and opined, “That’s a funny question because we actually try to steer away from the stereotypical ‘popular’ songs. Anybody can throw a band together and play crappy versions of famous songs. We like to pick songs that really have ‘feel’ to them and just rock them the best we can!” Continuing, he explained they do play some songs most people have heard before such as “The Well” by Marcus King, “The Thrill is Gone” by B.B. King, “Pride and Joy” by Stevie Ray Vaughan, “Red House” by Jimi Hendrix and more!
Simerson Hill currently has eight original songs and continues to write more constantly. Their most popular at the moment is said to be “Black Crow.” They elaborate, “Although it is kind of a carryover from [the Lilly Brothers], Lilly wrote the song, and it has a great deal of meaning to us all. The song was written about Josh Lilly, Chandis Lilly's brother who unexpectedly passed away a few years ago. Chandis Lilly would see this ‘black crow’ after his brother passed and always felt like it was Josh watching over him. Josh Lilly was also Davis’ best friend growing up.”
The love, dedication and passion these men have for music overall is what it takes to set a band apart from the rest, as Simerson Hill clearly has. But, they all acknowledge a love and passion they hold above music. Not only do they each have full-time careers, three of the four members have children and spouses. “Personally, our goals are to be the best fathers and husbands/boyfriends we can be and set a good example for our kids. Although Mike doesn’t have a kid just yet, he does have a girlfriend. Sorry, ladies!” They give due credit saying, “We want to thank our families, especially the wives/girlfriends, for putting up with us, and the real sacrifice it truly takes to be a working musician. People [strangers] come to shows and they watch you play for an hour or two, or three or sometimes even four hours, and they think that’s all you do. They don’t realize the constant time and energy it takes to do this. We also have several other family members and friends who support us regularly, as well as several fans we don’t really know personally who come to most of our shows, too.” Simerson Hill says they typically perform at least once a week as a full band but sometimes two or three times a week. Thompson and Lilly also play acoustic shows together weekly. Not to mention the time spent weekly practicing, writing, booking shows, promoting, planning.
So, how do they do it all? How do they balance the music life, full-time careers and their family lives? Lilly answers, “That is the golden question. It seems like there’s not enough time in the day. It helps when you have a great support system. Without my wife, I wouldn’t be able to make it all work.” Thompson adds, “It's definitely hard but if you enjoy and want to do something bad enough, you'll find or make time.” Davis responds, “I don’t! I just do the best I can every day to make sure I’m the best I can be for the people who need me most. Nothing is more important to me than my family. So, at the end of the day if things get in the way of Brandon the DAD and HUSBAND, then those things have to go!”
Individually, the members shared their thoughts about the band. Davis commented, “It’s been the most laid-back and fun group I’ve ever played with. There’s NEVER any stress or worrying before shows. We all trust each other and know what to expect from each other, both off and on the stage. The most drama free, good group of guys I’ve ever been around.” Lilly stated, “It’s been a blast. I really enjoy the fact we are playing songs we really enjoy playing and seeing people’s reactions. There are more blues/rock fans out there than I honestly expected. I foresee Simerson Hill coming out with an album and continuing to grind it out.” Simply put, Thompson admitted, “Great things are in the band’s future and these guys are my best friends now.” Finally, Perkins observed, “This has been the most solid, well-rounded and inclusive band I’ve ever been in. These guys have helped me to really come out of my ‘musical shell’ and do things on the bass and vocals I never thought of doing. We’ve got a great niche here and I feel like we can ride this train all the way.” Davis assured, “We are genuinely the most fun-loving, down-to-earth guys. Some people say we look scary and intimidating, but we’re all big ol’ teddy bears! Never hesitate to come talk!”
If you’ve traveled down Highway # 8 in Lexington recently, near the American Children’s Home, you’ve probably seen the popping, bright-and-bold billboard advertising Sounds of Summer, as it’s hard to miss. Ironically, one member of Simerson Hill actually installed the billboard. Perkins works for Lamar Advertising as a billboard installer, electrician and digital billboard technician. The band says seeing their name on the billboard was awesome. Laughing they confessed, “When Mike installed it, he immediately sent the group a photo. We told him it looked terrible just because he hung it, but it’s definitely a nice-looking sign!”
Simerson Hill, referring to Sounds of Summer, said, “This is an event we hold near and dear to our hearts, as Lexington is where the band calls home! We have played a lot of shows already this year, but we have been counting down the days until this one. We can’t wait to play for our closest friends and families! Most of the time we’re staring into a crowd of strangers!”
As excited as Simerson Hill is to perform, Lexington is just as thrilled and will be counting down the days. As Davis mentioned, it’s certainly true, it doesn’t take long to see that these guys really are “big ol’ teddy bears.” So don’t hesitate to speak to them at the event!
To keep up with Simerson Hill, their upcoming shows, upcoming album release, launch of soon available band merchandise and to show your support, be sure to follow them on social media.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Simerson-Hill-174615547424973/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simersonhill/
To find out more about Sounds of Summer, check out this previous Davidson Local article:https://www.davidsonlocal.com/news/chambers-summer-sounds-concert-is-now-free
Sounds of Summer Event Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/320129166159655
