Much like the days when the “Alabama Gang” would dominate NASCAR racing, Alabama artists are making their presence well-known on music’s biggest stages. Talent in the state runs deep and another band is set to take the next step, releasing their next record Young & Unafraid on June 20. A backing tour will feature the four Alabama natives who formed the Vegabonds at Auburn in 2009. They began hitting the college towns of the Southeast before moving to Nashville in 2012, coinciding with a European tour which gave them the confidence and experience that keeps the band going today. Singer Daniel Allen says, “It all goes back to the music, if we didn’t believe in it, we wouldn’t keep doing it. Our goal is to make people catch the vibe that we feel the first time we play a new song in the practice room.” The rest of the band is still Richard Forehand on guitars and pedal steel, keyboardist Beau Cooper, Paul Bruens on bass, and drummer Bryan Harris.