Striking Matches

The title track of Ashely Monroe's new The Blade album is a duet with Miranda Lambert, so when she didn't appear during Monroe's performance of the song at the Basement in Nashville on Wednesday night (July 22), it seemed unlikely the two friends would share the stage at all that night.

Sarah Zimmerman and Justin Davis have recently added Cream's "Crossroads" to the Striking Matches live set.

On the debut album from Striking Matches, one is forced to reconcile the guitar-slinging skills of Justin Davis and Sarah Zimmerman with the duo's softer, coffee-shop tendencies. Nothing But the Silence swings wildly between highs and lows. It’s an album with no patience for pedestrian.

Gary Allan has just won his second straight Showdown, and now faces a new challenge from newcomers Striking Matches.

With Striking Matches, the sneaking suspicions of a jilted lover never sounded so good. “Hanging on a Lie” is the debut single from Justin Davis and Sarah Zimmerman, and while they may be newcomers, they sound like seasoned pros.

Albums from Luke Bryan and Darius Rucker lead a long list of new country music releases scheduled for March 2015. The Spring Break troublemaker is going to release his final Spring Break EP on March 10, while Rucker will reveal his Southern Style on March 31.

It's a new year and already there's a whole lot of new music. So ... how do you decide what to listen to? We've compiled a list of the talented, emerging country artists who you'll definitely want to keep your eyes on in 2015.

OK, we know -- Striking Matches made last year's Artist to Watch list as well. But this year really is their year!

Striking Matches' debut album has seemingly been in the pipeline since the Bush administration. On March 24, the country duo (and their grassroots base of zealous supporters) will be rewarded with 'Nothing But the Silence,' a diverse, gritty mix of styles and sounds.

To say Ashley Monroe falls into herself during a song is misleading, and an understatement. When the singer drops her head and gives into the weight of her lissome eyelashes, it's as if theater curtains have dropped, concealing a world of chaos and disharmony that the audience only hears about on her albums, and on stage.