Circus No. 9
Circus No. 9 is East Tennessee’s own Progressive Bluegrass outfit, blurring the lines between Bluegrass, Jazz, Jambands and more. Described as “John Hartford meets John Coltrane” the group has appeared alongside artists including Grisman, Bryan Sutton, Larry Keel, and more.
Comprised of musicians Matthew Davis, Thomas Cassell, and Vince Ilagan, Circus No. 9 is one of the most exciting new bands on the acoustic music scene today. Davis is the winner of both the National Banjo Championship and the Rockygrass Banjo Contest, while Cassell won the Rockygrass Mandolin contest in 2016. Illagan on bass, has years of studio/touring experience and has toured with artists including Justin Townes Earle, Jeff Sipe, Scott Miller, and many others.
Bluegrass master Bryan Sutton had this high praise for the trio: “Circus No. 9 represents everything that is good about the new generation of acoustic music. These guys already exhibit a maturity and musicianship that has me thinking we’re going to be hearing great stuff from them for a long time”
