Pickin' In Paristown Music Series: Liam Purcell & Cane Mill Road

Enjoy free Bluegrass, a part of the Pickin' In Paristown series, on the 3rd Friday of each month. Friday, October 18th, will feature Liam Purcell and Cane Mill Road at Christy's Garden from 6-9 pm.

Bluegrass Roots from Deep Gap, NC

Characterized by No Depression as “the future of bluegrass,” Liam Purcell & Cane Mill Road twine innovation, tradition, and excellence into a unique musical experience. Though only in his 22nd year, North Carolina’s Liam Purcell has already established a name in American Stringband music. Growing up less than a mile from the legendary guitarist Doc Watson, Purcell was steeped in Appalachian Old-Time and Bluegrass traditions from an early age. Drawing inspiration from the local Deep Gap legacy, Liam began writing, performing, and storytelling early.

Entering the professional bluegrass circuit during his teenage years, Purcell formed the string band supergroup Cane Mill Road. He would go on to lead the virtuosic ensemble through regional appearances, building a fanbase across the Southeast and bringing his homespun rapport to some of the most revered festivals in the scene. By the time Purcell was 17, the project had seen multiple entries on the Billboard Top 10 Bluegrass charts, performed in 25 states, and was recognized by the International Bluegrass Music Association in 2019 as the recipient of their Momentum Band of the Year Award.

New paths emerged for Liam in 2020 when he was accepted to attend Berklee College of Music (Boston, MA) on a full scholarship. However, plans quickly ground to a halt with the onset of a global pandemic. Using this time to write and record, Purcell began his studies remotely while multi-tracking a 10-song album released as “Roots” later that year. This independent project led to a widely anticipated tour and a recording contract with Pinecastle Records over the following years.

Departing his native Appalachia, Purcell took up residence in Boston while attending Berklee, following in the footsteps of Molly Tuttle, Infamous Stringdusters, Sierra Hull, Crooked Still, and many others who came out of the College’s famed American Roots Program. Despite the rigorous course of study, Liam Purcell & Cane Mill Road performed over 80 dates per year around an academic schedule. In 2022, Purcell shook the bluegrass world by sweeping the Rockygrass Instrumental Championships in Colorado, taking home first-place honors on mandolin, banjo, and guitar. He is the only person to ever achieve a simultaneous victory in multiple championships.

Recording their latest album “Yellow Line”, Liam Purcell & Cane Mill Road dug deep into the writing and arranging facets of creativity. Purcell described the responsibility of carrying on a living tradition; “It was very important to me that I began this project the way I had learned from my heroes. Just us, telling stories in songs, building on the rich and diverse folk culture I had grown up in. However, I couldn’t simply leave it there. Everyone I’ve ever looked up to as an entertainer, Doc in particular, had never acknowledged boundaries between genre, style, origin, or influence. While I cared deeply about honoring the Appalachian Stringband music I loved, I also have my own songs inside, my own feelings to express, and my innovations to contribute.”

Finishing his degree in String Performance, Purcell graduated from Berklee in May of 2024, promptly hitting the road for over two months of heavy touring. Relocating to Nashville, Tennessee, Liam maintains his Deep Gap roots, watering them on stage each night in front of new audiences as if to transport listeners beyond the lights and curtains to a front porch up in the mountains where the journey all began.

Joining Liam in Cane Mill Road are some of the best creative minds in the string band world:

Fiddle: Ella Jordan - Coupland, TX
Guitar: Rob McCormac - Asheville, NC
Bass: Jacob Smith - Eden, NC
Banjo: Zack Vickers - Dahlonega, GA
Audio: Alex Naismith - Chapel Hill, NC