Samantha Fish first came to mainstream attention as part of a trio of artists on the 2011 record, but over the past decade or so she has proven to be a more singular – and much less easy to pigeonhole – talent. Over the course of seven studio albums, first for German indie label Ruf and more recently for blues and roots powerhouse Rounder, Fish has carved out a style that marries high-octane blues with raucous rock ’n’ roll, pop, country, punk, hip-hop and other sounds. Binding it all together are her commanding vocals and tasty, melodic guitar work, attributes that have over the years garnered a sizable audience that counts Slash amongst its members.
“Samantha reminds me a little bit of Bonnie Raitt in some ways,” Slash says of his S.E.R.
P.E.N.
T. Festival mate. “She’s got this cool swagger and incredible blues tone and style.
She’s a real natural, and somebody that sort of surprised me when I first heard her play. I was like, ‘Wow, this is great!’” Regarding her penchant for mixing the blues with other styles, Fish sees it as a part of a long tradition. “A lot of my heroes are rock ’n’ roll people who learned from the blues and then reinterpreted it,” she says.
“And I think that’s the challenge – ‘What can I say with the blues?’ It’s also part of the fun of being an artist – you get to play around and mix up these different things that inspire you, and not restrict yourself too much. I always want to make sure I stay true to who .