As traditional bluegrass goes, California band Nickel Creek is anything but traditional. Having an album accented with Celtic, jazz and classical music, along with bluegrass, the band has been able to provoke a major stir in the world of music. Nickel Creek will be bringing their unconventional bluegrass to the Maintenance Shop tonight.Nickel Creek has existed as a band for more than a decade, though the three members are barely old enough to vote, consisting of 19-year-old mandolin player Chris Thile, 18-year-old fiddler Sara Watkins and her 23-year-old brother Sean Watkins. “It was really great teachers and lots of work,” guitarist Sean Watkins said about the band’s past experiences. In 1994, the group won the Southwest regional division of the Pizza Hut International Bluegrass Band Showdown. Add to that Sara’s win at the Arizona State Fiddle Championship at age 15. Brother Sean was also a finalist on mandolin and guitar in the National Flatpicking Guitar Championship at age 16. Thile also has a list of accomplishments. He has been nominated three consecutive times by the International Bluegrass Music Association for Mandolin Player of the Year and once for Emerging Artist of the Year. The band, as a whole, was nominated in 1999 for Emerging Artist of the Year and worked with bluegrass musician and album producer Allison Krauss. “It was a really good experience, and she is also a great musician,” Watkins said. When it came to recording an album, Nickel Creek used their gained experience to choose Krauss as the perfect producer for them. Blending elements from Celtic, pop, jazz and Classical music, the trio has crafted a more technical sound, often named “Newgrass” by many critics. “It’s great that we can play with musicians that we respect, but on the other side of it, we’re busier than we used to be,” said Watkins on the Nickel Creek’s success. With the release of their self-titled debut album, Nickel Creek has skyrocketed into the public eye. The band’s single “Reasons Why” made it into regular rotation on CMT and the album has spent some time at the top of the charts. As Watkins looks to the future, he says the group hopes to continue as professional musicians, along with being as creative as possible.