The beginnings of Breath can be traced back to childhood friends Steven O’Kelly and Ian Caton, who began playing music together during High School in the suburbs of Portland OR. The culmination of a search for their own voice, being an inseparable rhythm section for hire through many projects. The fruit of O’Kelly’s magnetism to solo songwriting and spiritual seeking coalesced into their debut Primeval Transmissions released in 2021 by Desert Records. Their album was recorded by Rob Wrong at his home studio Wrong Way Recording in March of 2020, and mastered by the great Tad Doyle. Wrong of Witch Mountain played guitar on a couple tracks on their debut, including the ceremonial Halls of Amenti as part of Primeval Transmission’s remixed & remastered 2023 release by Desert Records. Taking their inspiration from other heavy hitters such as Earth, OM and Grails, as well as classic mentors Black Sabbath & Ravi Shankar, Breath’s musical tapestry runs deep. Both Caton and O’Kelly learned eastern styles of music playing in Portland’s Gamelan Wahyu Dari Langit from 2016 to 2020. Traditional Indonesian song structure that helped expand their writing beyond the guard rails of western convention. Growling high decibel distortion to restrained incense laden marches influenced by Geddy Lee, Al Cisneros, and earth-shaking rhythms of John Bonham. Portland Oregon’s Breath continue to paint outside their canvas with new additions Lauren Hatch on Keys in 2023 & Justin Acevedo joining on Guitar in 2024.
