Bristol based The Blessing are made up of bassist Jim Barr, drummer Clive Deamer, trumpeter Pete Judge and saxophonist Jake McMurchie. Jim Barr and Clive Deamer of ’90s trip-hop superstars Portishead formed The Blessing in 2000 to share a fascination with improvised music, a pathological distrust of chords and a passion for north-african cuisine. They started out playing the music of Ornette Coleman but began slowly to make a noise of their own. Their combined new approach has much in common with the current crop of trailblazers, bands such as EST, Polar Bear and Acoustic Ladyland and draws from influences as diverse as the Kings of Leon, Morphine, Elvis Castello and Albert Ayler. The Blessing’s catchy, rocking tunes and arrangements create a genre-bending blend of sounds that is all their own.
The Blessing have already established a fan base with numerous performances in Bristol and London and are now to storm onto the UK and European scene with their debut studio album “All is Yes” which, in conjunction with UK and European tours will certainly confirm the Blessing’s reputation as “jazz-informed art-rock at its finest” (Venue Magazine).