Jon Stickley Trio is a genre-defying and cinematic instrumental trio, who’s deep grooves, innovative flatpicking, and sultry-spacy violin moves the listener’s head, heart, and feet. “It’s not your father’s acoustic-guitar music—although Stickley’s pop showed him his first chords when he was 12 years old. Instead, Stickley’s Martin churns out a mixture of bluegrass, Chuck Berry, metal, prog, grunge, and assorted other genres—all thoroughly integrated into a personal style,” writes Guitar Player Magazine.
Premier Guitar says, “Stickley’s trio… is not a traditional bluegrass group by any means… they are just nimble and ambitious enough to navigate EDM-style breakbeats as effortlessly as the old timey standard ‘Blackberry Blossom.’”
“Stickley is a super-resourceful acoustic guitarist who uses the instrument in many surprising ways and whose timing is just flawless. Fiddler Lyndsay Pruett puts deep thought into her flowing solos, plus she adds little flourishes and sudden stops that elevate the music,” proclaims Nashville’s Music City Roots’ Craig Havighurst.
Jon Stickley Trio announces a change in lineup beginning in January 2018 with new drummer, Hunter Deacon, who is both classically trained and boasts heavy jazz influences. Hailing from the ever-hip Knoxville, Tennessee, Hunter studied with drummer Keith Brown and received a BM in Studio Music and Jazz from the University of Tennessee. Deacon then went on to complete a six month residency at a jazz club in Hangzhou, China where he performed seven nights a week. Since his return, he’s played with Scott Miller and the Commonwealth, toured the country with Sam Lewis, and performs with guitarist Mike Baggetta.
Stickley says about the seemingly sudden lineup change, “we’re really excited to add Hunter’s vibe to the mix, his creativity and willingness to experiment were two things that drew us to him, and Lyndsay and I were quickly surprised and inspired by what he’ll bring to the table.”
With inspiration ranging from from Green Day to Duran Duran to Tony Rice to Nirvana, Grateful Dead, David Grisman and beyond, the Trio is making waves with their unique sound. Along with releasing two full length albums and one EP in the past few years, the Trio has zig-zagged the nation, playing over 120 dates in 2017 alone. They are road tested and band geek approved!
Dave King (of The Bad Plus) joined forces with Jon Stickley Trio to produce 2017’s Maybe Believe and 2015’s Lost At Last (which The New York Times called “both respectful and free”) in the band’s hometown of Asheville, NC at the esteemed Echo Mountain Recording Studio. The Trio slipped a self-produced 5-track EP, Triangular, into the mix in December of 2016.
“In a time when a lot of instrumental music feels more like math than art, Jon Stickley Trio reminds us of the pure joy that can be created and shared through music,” says Greensky Bluegrass’ Anders Beck.
Stickley says, “The Trio feels fresher and hotter than ever, we’ve hit our stride in terms of creating tunes that are uniquely us and that’s a really exciting place to be musically. Not to mention we are so stoked to get back to many of our favorite festivals and clubs, and even more excited to play some the ones we’ve always dreamed of. 2018 will, without a doubt, be our best year yet!”
Jon Stickley is known for his rapid-fire flatpicking, and his ability to blend different musical elements from across the board to create a sound that is all his own. Based in Asheville, North Carolina, this Durham native has been in various bands throughout the years, including Colorado’s legendary Broke Mountain, and several Asheville based bands. The Jon Stickley Trio has become his primary focus, and the vessel through which he presents his original music.
“Stickley’s powerful flatpicking gathers influences from the greats such as Tony Rice, but also allows for other, more modern, sounds to creep in. ‘Darth Radar’ is a rapid-fire take that moves from a serious ska beat to burning surf-style runs that would make Dick Dale proud.” –Premier Guitar, Jason Shadrick
Lyndsay Pruett is an extremely diverse fiddle player currently residing in Asheville, NC. Her daily life is a constant toss up of genres. As a member of the Jon Stickley trio, she gets to employ just about all of them, including bluegrass, swing, classical, Latin styles, country, and hip hop. Lyndsay got a BM in Commercial Violin Performance from Belmont University in Nashville, TN. Stylistically, she manages to compliment others’ music and add striking color to it through her improvisations and textural playing.
“Lyndsay Pruett is the violinist for the Jon Stickley Trio. She is also one of the best fiddlers you are likely to meet equally adept at jazz, classical, bluegrass, newgrass, rock, dub step, or just about anything else. Born into a musical family, Lyndsay has carried her musical roots well” –Perfect Note Podcast
Hunter Deacon grew up in Memphis, TN where he studied and played classical percussion and drum set. After moving around for several years, he landed in Knoxville, TN where he studied with drummer Keith Brown and went on to receive a BM in Studio Music and Jazz from the University on TN. In 2013 he moved to Hangzhou, China where he had a 6 month residency at a jazz club performing 7 nights a week. Since his return, he has played with Scott Miller and the Commonwealth, toured the country with Sam Lewis, and performs regularly with guitarist Mike Baggetta.
