Two-time Texaco Country Showdown State champions and national recording artists Kris Hitchcock and Small Town Son have become one of the midwest’s most heralded and sought after country acts. With one self-produced album under their belt and another with Nashville producer Jimmy Dulin (Jaron and the long road to love) just released, awe-inspiring musicianship and dynamic live shows, this Michigan-based 5 piece band are stars on the rise. Kris Hitchcock, the bands frontman and songwriter, worked for years on the craft of songwriting before writing in Nashville, TN. With a lyrical sense in the stroke of Springsteen and Mellencamp, and a direction towards honest and personal experiences turned into songs, Kris turns pictures of life’s moments into midwest rock anthems for the people of our time.

They aren’t just country for the sake of country, or rock/pop to fit into a trend, but an authentic, gritty, and straight look at the thoughtss and issues that define growing up and growing old in our world. The sound is midwest country at its best; Tom Petty with a fiddle, Bob Seger with a twang, and 100% born and bred from the heart of the heartland.

STS has opened for:
Luke Bryan
Easton Corbin
Florida Georgia Line
Kip Moore
Eric Church
Justin Moore
Josh Thompson
Steel Magnolia
Randy Houser
Frankie Ballard
Jason Jones
Flynnville Train
Cody McCarver
Fast Ryde
Joe Nichols

STS has over 70,000 fans on over 300 Music and Social Networks and is on over 3,000 websites. STS also maintains an active email newsletter schedule that reaches over 1,000 subscribers a week.

Burning Good Rubber, their first album released in 2010, was met with rabid appreciation by fans and industry members throughout the mid west region. “Missing you”, one of the many standout tracks, received radio airplay on several Michigan and Indiana stations.

~ The Band ~

Kris Hitchcock fronts the band and is a multi-instrumentalist singer/songwriter and dynamic vocalist whose gritty tenor and tremendous range belies his young age, and with a sense of lyric and melody that speak of a seasoned songsmith. With an active writing schedule in and out of Nashville, TN, Kris spends as much time writing as he does singing and playing, which gives STS the great songs that are set to explode on the national scene.
Kris also plays guitar (acoustic and electric) and piano.

Ian Szarafinski is the skilled lead guitar player and backup vocalist, in addition to playing mandolin and banjo. Between his harmony singing and clever guitar playing from a blues and rock background, Ian is one of the most sought after lead pickers in the area and a proud founding member of the band.

Marc Dixon joined the band as drummer in the winter of 2012 after spending several years on tour with a international blues act. He’s the proud owner of some bad ass dreadlocks and plays with the ferocity and talent of a honey badger.

Mike Howe is a true talent at the Bass guitar and backup vocals. Winner of the Guitar Center “King of the blues” competition for Grand Rapids on lead guitar, Mike made the transition back to bass guitar and has fallen right into step with the high-octane music that makes the band go.

Susan Belliel is the world class violinist that gives STS their awesome blend of musicianship. When she isn’t playing with the Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra, Susan’s bluegrass and country fiddle licks are absolutely unmatched. Having played and recorded in both Michigan and Nashville, and majored in performance at Calvin college in Michigan, Susan is a professional of the highest caliber.