Few Miles South is a female fronted, country and roots group created by south GA raised, Blake English, and Los Angeles native, Tori Lund. The two met in 2014 while playing in an L.A. church. Tori, a classically trained singer and music teacher, and Blake, a multi-instrumentalist, Grammy nominated producer/engineer and owner of Southern Fried Studio, connected over a shared love of country music. They began to write and record songs with intentions to shop them to other artists, but a couple years bonding with their catalog compelled them to wrangle up some local musicians and form a band. Eager to pursue music and ditch the city, Tori and Blake quit their jobs and headed south.
FMS offers a refreshing take on the traditional genre, while “aiming to revive the golden age of Country music” (KCRW, NPR). Tori’s ethereal vocals are the yin to Blake’s “grandiose guitar picking, that even the likes of Billy Strings and Molly Tuttle would be proud of” (The Boot). Inspired by artists like Hank Williams, Jerry Reed, Emmylou Harris and The Band, thoughtful songs, nostalgic twang and knee slappin’ grooves attract listeners across generations. Their first single “On Down the Road” was awarded HOTDISC Country’s Best International Music Video in 2017, and they’ve since had 3 singles in the Top 10 on UK’s HOTDISC Country Radio Chart. Live radio and TV performances include ABC and WSM Radio, their songs have been featured on PBS and GPB, Fox Sports, and music videos premiered on Ditty TV, CME (Country Music Entertainment), LocalNow and Nashville Country TV.
“Stick[ing] to the tried and true country backroads” (Skope Magazine) has steered FMS to perform at festivals throughout N. America, including Stagecoach (CA), WE Fest (MN), Red Ants Pants (MT), MusikFest (PA), Jasper Folk Festival (AB), and opened for Shenandoah, Reckless Kelly, The Kentucky Headhunters, Daniel Donato, Eddie 9V, Junior Brown, John R. Miller and more. They have 3 studio releases, Might Could EP (2018), Californ I Aint (2019) and Wiregrass EP (2020), and most recently (May 2022) a hybrid bluegrass single/video, “Doggone”, featuring another collaboration with Michael Cleveland. They are currently at work on their next album while traveling and performing around the US. Blake and Tori pride themselves on handling all their writing, producing and recording together from English’s own Southern Fried Studio deep in the Georgia pines.
“grandiose guitar picking, that even the likes of Billy Strings and Molly Tuttle would be proud of” – THE BOOT
“An interesting outfit, one that exists in more than a single realm…as a full band, it’s a rootsy country throwback sound, but as a duo, things get more grassy with Blake’s flatpicking skills coming to the fore”
– BLUEGRASS TODAY
“Aiming to revive the golden age of country music” – NPR
