Grey Matter Circus explores psychology, social issues, and the human condition through conceptual song cycles and multi faceted compositions. The band's writing highlights Jori's theatrical flair, Calvin's virtuosity, and Matt's melodic sensibilities. Their live performances infuse these pieces with the energy that comes from a genuine love for their art, playing through sets carefully curated to flow naturally and engage audiences.

Bio

Grey Matter Circus explores psychology, social issues, and the human condition through conceptual song cycles and multi faceted compositions. The band's writing highlights Jori's theatrical flair, Calvin's virtuosity, and Matt's melodic sensibilities. Their live performances infuse these pieces with the energy that comes from a genuine love for their art, playing through sets carefully curated to flow naturally and engage audiences.

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Calvin Merseal was born and raised in Denver Colorado. Though always an avid music fan, he didn’t pursue music creatively until he was in his twenties. He learned to play bass and drums, joining Amalgam Effect (drums) in 2013 with Matt Spivack and Kody Little, and later founding the first incarnation of Grey Matter Circus as the bassist/lyricist. Calvin takes inspiration from a wide range of musical and literary influences, and conceived Grey Matter Circus as a hybrid of heavier classic progressive rock (Rush/King Crimson/Kansas), 90s prog and prog metal (Tool/Porcupine Tree/Dream Theater), and the heavier and more technical side of grunge (Soundgarden/Stone Temple Pilots/Alice in Chains). Calvin is driven by creativity and restless ambition. He approaches all things with a thirst for lifelong learning, unfiltered creative expression, and a critical sense of philosophical optimism.

Matt Spivack was born in Ocean, New Jersey and raised in Denver, Colorado. He was exposed to Celtic folk music by his mother at a young age, and then classic progressive rock under the influence of his father and step-father, who are both musicians themselves. A fascination with the group Jethro Tull caused Matt to teach himself flute, as well as singing and acoustic guitar. A love for Rush and Yes built Matt's interest in playing bass, and before long he played bass and sang in a group called Terra Legato. Matt eventually left Terra Legato to form the band that would become Amalgam Effect with Kody Little and Calvin Merseal, doing lead vocals, flute, and rhythm guitar. During his time in Amalgam Effect, Matt began to hone his skills on the electric guitar. Matt's younger brother Richard formed the initial lineup of Grey Matter Circus as lead guitarist with Calvin on bass. After Richard left, an offer was extended to Matt to take his brother's place. He of course accepted, and has been with us since. Matt cites some of his biggest influences as Jethro Tull, Rush, Porcupine Tree, Opeth, Uriah Heep, and Wishbone Ash, among other similar artists. He's a big gear nerd who has an ongoing obsession with PRS guitars, a casual fencer, a player of tabletop role-playing games, and an avid history buff with a particular affinity for early medieval European history. He also has a love of Irish and Scotch whisky, in case you're looking to buy him a drink after a show

Born in Scottsdale AZ and raised in Aurora CO, to musical and theatrically inclined parents, Jori was exposed to the arts at a very young age. She was practially raised on a stage, beginning as a dancer and very early on discovering a love for theatre. She played the trombone in her youth but turned her focus to singing. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre, pushing herself with both classical and contemporary vocal training. Though her focus had always been musical theatre and opera, she always desired to be what she would call a ‘musical chameleon’, able to shift between genres. Jori’s love of singing has had her dabbling in many different vocal styles, from classical opera and musical theatre to jazz, country and contemporary pop. She joined Grey Matter Circus in 2023 with a desire to further test her limits and dig into rock music, and in doing so, she has found a new stage where she can let loose and be her authentic self. Her biggest influences in finding her rock voice are Amy Lee, Ann Wilson, Pat Benatar, and Avril Lavigne, while a love of Queen, Journey and Styx also played a part in influencing her musically as she dives into the rock genre headfirst.
As the 'ringmaster' and a classically trained soprano, Jori hopes to bring her own flair and some unexpected twists to this musical circus.

Dillon McDonald was born in Loveland, Colorado and began his musical journey at six years old when he started playing piano. In the roughly thirty years since then, he has learned to play saxophone, and taught himself guitar and bass, while also dabbling in singing from time to time. He joined Grey Matter Circus to provide sonic reinforcement - via rhythm guitar and vocal harmonies - in 2020. He strives to bring a post-grunge sense of mood and melody to the every musical project, drawing songwriting inspiration equally from artists like Jackson Browne and Collective Soul.