Carolina Shine

With an amazingly dynamic and cohesive sound, Carolina Shine has broken into the Pittsburgh music scene with an electrifying line up of incredibly talented veteran musicians. Through a mix of classic and modern rock, pop, blues and soul, their music leaps off the stage and captivates audiences from the first note to the last. Since their inception in 2006, Carolina Shine has defied expectations to become a mainstay band in the local rock scene with their diversity, vibrance,energy and passion.

Carolina Shine’s mesmerizing Lead Singer, Sam Fullerton,26, has been entertaining crowds with his intensely emotional and melodic vocal stylings for several years. His energetic stage performance has been described as reminiscent of Jim Morrison or Eddie Vedder with vocal influences ranging from Jeff Buckley and Chris Cornell to Gregg Allman and Robert Plant.Adding fuel to the fire ignited by Sam, Lead Guitarist Jeff Drentkiewicz, 26,has opened the door for Carlolina Shine to explore their creativity with his remarkable playing ability. Self-taught and modest by nature, Jeff has been playing for nearly a decade and is in fact a former member of one of Pittsburgh’s favorite local bands, Tweed. Jeff cites Carlos Santana and David Gilmour as his main influences. Veteran bass player David Fix, 25, graduated from Berklee School of Music in Boston and has studied under such bass pioneers as Jim Stinnett and Dwayne Dolphin. Dave has been a member of such well known groups as the Pittsburgh-based alternative rock band Spheez and Boston-based Chatter.Dave attributes his style to innovative bassists Mike Gordon, James Jamerson,Ray Brown, and Chris Wood. Another music veteran, Ron Payne, 36, is a classically trained pianist who has been playing music and entertaining crowds for nearly 30 years. His diverse playing style was developed through his interests in rock, jazz, R&B, and soul. In addition to being a sought-afterDJ, Ron was a founding member of the local cult-favorite “E.S.P.” before helping to form “Carolina Shine.” Rounding out the group is Dennis Young,27, who has been playing percussion since the age of 7. His passion for rock and jazz comes out in his intense and meticulous playing style reminiscent of his main influence, Rush’s Neal Peart. Combining the sounds of both acoustic and electronic drums, Dennis commands the attention of listeners, especially with his explosive solos, and always leaves the crowd wanting more

Carolina Shine has been receiving an extraordinary amount of attention and buzz, and clearly there is no limit to the success this band can achieve. With their wide range of sounds stretching across genres,they have captured a large following of music lovers and music novices alike,and the excitement surrounding the group has been explosive.