The singer-songwriter played blues and country for a long time before opening for Slash at the Northern Quest.

Samantha Fish is from Kansas City, Missouri. She picked up the guitar for the first time at the age of 16 after playing drums for a few years. She soon found her heroes in the hard work of old blues legends.

Like many others, Fish was drawn to the sounds of the Mississippi Delta. It’s hard to deny the innovations of artists like RL Burnside and Junior Kimbrough, and Fish was fascinated by all things blues and rock from an early age.

“When I learned to play guitar, I started to really enjoy the blues format and the ability to express myself in that open format,” Fish said. “You really have room to express feelings and develop a voice, and that pushed me in the direction I’ve been heading ever since.”

She started playing locally at 19 until she signed her first contract with Ruf Records. Now, at 35, she has spent more than a decade finding her own sound and refining it over time, although she still prefers her version of blues rock to be a little raw.

“I want things to feel raw; I’m not a big fan of polish if it doesn’t have to be,” Fish said. “I’ve always been drawn to that raw sound.”

Fish has released 12 albums, her most recent being a collaboration with Jesse Dayton, who is primarily a country artist.

Released in May 2023 and nominated for a Grammy, Death Wish Blues can be described as “rough and tough” with its fuzz guitars, snappy lyrics and electric yet classic sound. Fish and Dayton’s vocals are the perfect combination of powerful and deep, and Fish’s voice is perhaps the absolute highlight with its impressive range and sheer power that is impossible to ignore.

Fish and her manager had been toying with the idea of ​​a joint album for several years, and she had known Dayton for several years, so there was an instant spark between them when she met him by chance in New Orleans (where Fish now lives).

Originally, Fish wanted to do something completely different. She wanted to find a partner, wear costumes, perform under assumed names and possibly try out a genre like punk rock.

Over time, the two found themselves drawn to the sound that was more familiar to Fish (although that concept is not out of the question for Fish).

“We started working together and found a common goal and identity for the project. It’s not about punk rock and costumes, but we had something raw and exaggerated in mind,” Fish said.

“The result is something that gets us closer, but still takes us a step forward.”

Fish recently opened for all-time legend Slash on Saturday at the Northern Quest Resort & Casino.

Slash released his own blues-heavy album, Orgy of The Damned, in May, and to say that touring with him is more than a dream come true might be an understatement for Fish.

“The teenager in me is incredibly excited. Do you know how many times I sat down and tried to analyze ‘Appetite for Destruction’ when I was learning to play guitar?” Fish said, adding, “He’s a guitar legend and someone I’ve looked up to for years. When I first heard about it, I didn’t even think it existed.”

Fish was also excited to return to Spokane. While it’s been several years since she played here during one of her early West Coast tours, her love for Washington is still fresh.

“I really like Spokane, it’s a pretty cool place,” Fish said. “There’s really no other place in the country that looks like the Pacific Northwest. It’s beautiful.”