Gloriana to come up country at The State

While country fans have known about Gloriana for a while, the first time many others heard of the band was at the American Music Awards in November.

The group beat Lady Gaga for the breakthrough artist award, an honor chosen by online fan vote.

"They're really at the beginning of their career," said Steve Perry, who booked the band to perform a show Saturday at Modesto's State Theatre. "They've got the launching point going now. This is probably someone who is going to be Rascal Flatts or the Dixie Chicks, ultimately."

Known for the songs "How Far Do You Wanna Go?" and "Wild Heart," Gloriana features four-part harmony and a "new wave" country sound that mixes pop, bluegrass and rock.

The most well-known member is 19-year-old Cheyenne Kimball, who had some success as a solo artist before joining the band and was featured in the 2006 MTV reality series "Meet Cheyenne." At age 12, she won NBC's "America's Most Talented Kid."

She joined Rachel Reinert and brothers Tom, 28, and Mike Gossin, 25, in Nashville to form Gloriana almost three years ago.

The addition of Kimball was a bonus for the trio, said Reinert, 20, in a recent phone interview from a tour stop in Boise, Idaho.

"Cheyenne had a decent amount of fans after her first record came out," Reinert said. "It seemed like all of her fans transferred over to become Gloriana fans."

The Gossins, along with their older brother Steve, filmed a pilot for a VH-1 reality series for their old North Carolina band Madison Rose, which can be viewed on YouTube. After that band folded, the Gossins moved to Nashville and approached Reinert through her MySpace page about working together.

The band started out by playing small bars around the country but has exploded in the past year. Gloriana has opened for LeAnn Rimes, Taylor Swift and Alan Jackson.

"It was great to learn from them and see what they do," Reinert said. "The country community is so wonderful. It feels like they've welcomed us with open arms."

Those who attend the group's Modesto concert will see a full band, with the Gossins playing guitar, Kimball playing mandolin and two other musicians playing bass and drums.

"People can expect a really high-energy performance," Reinert said. "The four of us are really connected. We feed off of each other and have fun. We like to incorporate the audience as well."

Reinert said the AMA win definitely has helped Gloriana's members gain recognition.

"Before, we were completely under the radar," she said. "Yesterday on the plane, several people knew who we were. The exposure for us after winning that award — it seems like people are finally starting to pay attention."

For more on Modesto area arts, visit www.twitter.com/lisamillegan or the thehive.modbee.com/artsbeat.