Photo by Heather Hambor
It’s been a whirlwind year for the Jon Stickley Trio! On the tail of their 2015 fan funded and independent release, Lost at Last, they have just announced a brand new 5-song EP, Triangular, and a Kickstarter Campaign to help them head back into Echo Mountain Recording Studio with Producer Dave King (Of The Bad Plus) to record a new full length album. King also produced Lost At Last which garnered praise from The New York Times, NPR’s Heavy Rotation, NPR’s World Cafe, Premier Guitar Magazine, Acoustic Guitar Magazine, and many others.
Lost At Last made it into rotation on radio stations both nationally and internationally, the Trio performed at over 100 festivals and venues across the country (Including the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC), attracted attention of thousands of new fans, and landed a top notch booking agent. All of this interlocks, proving that the release of a recording can translate directly into touring traction and financial returns that propel the band into the future. Jon Stickley Trio heads into the studio in early December to record the yet unnamed full length album.
“Asheville, NC’s Jon Stickley has been playing in bluegrass bands for years, and is known as a progressive and adventurous flatpicker, but his musical roots and influences range widely to include rap, grunge, punk and more.” Linda Fahey with FolkAlley says for NPR’s Heavy Rotation. “When he teamed up with fiddler Lyndsay Pruett and drummerPatrick Armitage — originally as a lighthearted side project — the end result is a wonderfully unique sound that defies easy categorization.”
Jon Stickley Trio is looking to raise $28,000 and launched the Kickstarter campaign on 10/10; Folks can get involved until it ends on 11/11. They say, “We’ve set our goal at $28,000 which is substantially less than what the realistic costs add up to, because we understand that this is a group effort, and we are a part of that group!”
Anyone that donates $5 or more toward the new full length album will get one song from the new 5-song EP,Triangular, as an immediate download. The track is called “Blackburn Brothers” and it is a funky trio version of a tune Jon originally wrote with his brother Jeff while down at the Carolina coast. It features expressive solos by Jon and Lyndsay, that sync up with their signature, on point unison melody playing at the end. The song also highlights a danceable, somewhat latin drum beat.
Head on over to Live For Live Music to listen to the World Premiere of “Blackburn Brothers.” →
http://bit.ly/JS3_L4LM_
Anyone that donates $10 or more will get Triangular as soon as the goal is reached. The EP was recorded at Blue Sprocket Sound in Harrisonburg, VA this summer. Other packages include private house concerts, a day at the studio with the band when they record the new album, music lessons with each member, limited edition “Individual Person” t-shirts of each member of the band (only available through the Kickstarter campaign), the new yet un-named album , an ultra-special limited Vinyl edition of Triangular(only available through the Kickstarter campaign), previous recordings, and more!
This budget figures in the recording, mixing, mastering and pressing of the new full length album. A portion of the budget is also dedicated to promotion of the new album as well as the EP, this includes print and radio. Jon Says, “This was such a huge part of the success of Lost at Last and since we didn’t plan for it last time we added it in this time around.” They’ve also budgeted in album art, photos and graphic designs that will all be a part of the new album as well.
Dave King is the drummer of The Bad Plus, also a trio, whose music combines elements of modern avant-garde jazz with rock and pop influences. “The Bad Plus, also a mainly instrumental group, has had an influence on our band since the start.” Jon Stickley continues, “We all loved Dave King independently and when we found out one day he used to be Patrick’s drum teacher we freaked out. Dave’s presence on the last album was unmistakable. His sometimes subtle guidance, and other times obvious counsel made Lost at Last what it was. We’re so excited about going into the studio with him for a second time around, now that we’ve gotten to know him and are less fan-girly.”
The band’s drummer, Patrick Armitage, has deep roots to Minneapolis, where King is from. He says, “I was lucky enough to study under Dave King for 6 years. Now I get to work with him professionally. That’s an honor. With Dave producing our last record and my drumming it’s nice to know there is a little bit of Minneapolis sneaking it’s way into The Jon Stickley Trio.”
The rest of the band first met King the evening before hitting the studio to make Lost at Last. In a way, that session was a “getting to know you” experience for all of them. They became fast friends, and clicked musically in the studio, but in the end it left the band wondering what they could accomplish if they were to have the same opportunity again. The exciting prospects led them to decide to work with him on this upcoming record in the same studio.
“Echo Mountain was the perfect fit for us because the setting of the old church, the creakiness of the wood, the vintage hum of the gear, and the discerning ear of Julian Dryer added an audible realness and character to the recording that was totally complimentary to our improvisational, original instrumental music, “ says Jon Stickley.
Since the recording and release of Lost at Last, Jon Stickley Trio has traveled over 50,000 miles, played shows in new territories all over the country, and evolved into a fully formed, musical identity that was just beginning to take shape on the first record. Stickley realizes, “Our musicality has matured individually, and collectively to the extent that we can read each other, and respond to each other in a completely intuitive and natural way. We can’t wait to take our matured sound back into Echo Mountain with our mentor and producer, Dave King.”
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10/8 Sat – The Festy – Arrington, VA
10/14 Fri – PLC Land Jam @ Carolina Theatre – Greensboro, NC*
10/15-16 Sat-Sun – Suwannee Roots Revival – Live Oak, FL
10/17 Mon – Beaches Museum History Park Chapel – Jacksonville, Fl
10/20 Thu – NC State Fair – Raleigh, NC
10/21 Fri – House Concert – Durham, NC
10/22 – Cat’s Cradle- Carrboro, NC
11/2 Wed – 1904 Music Hall – Jacksonville, FL
11/3 Thu – The Ale & The Witch – St. Petersburg, FL
11/4 Fri – Fogarty Community Media and Arts Center – Sarasota, FL
11/5 Sat – Arts Garage – Delray Beach, FL
11/9 Wed – Guanabanas – Jupiter, FL
11/10 Thu – Terra Fermata – Stuart, FL
11/11 Fri – Point Ybel Brewing – Fort Myers, FL
11/12 Sat – The Funky Buddha – Boca Raton, FL
11/13 Sun – Fifth and Thomas Kitchen – Tallahassee, FL
12/7 Wed – WDVX Tennessee Shines @ Boyd’s Jig & Reel – Knoxville, TN
12/30 Fri – The National – Richmond, VA ^
12/31 Sat – Isis Music Hall – Asheville, NC #
* w. Ricky Skaggs
^ w. The Infamous Stringdusters
# w. The Honeycutters
