IT’S never easy for a musician when a band breaks up.

But a guitarist from Hexham has been enjoying a successful start to his career with a new band.

20-year-old Elliot Thompson is well known in the North-East music scene, and was a member of Hexham band Blind Buffalo.

The former Queen Elizabeth High School student played bass in the popular three-piece act, but when its members headed off to university two years ago, the band took a temporary hiatus that has ended up being permanent, with the members each going their separate ways.

Like his former Blind Buffalo bandmate Chris Kelly, Elliot studies in Manchester at the British and Irish Modern Music Institute, or BIMM as it is more commonly known.

Alongside his events management course, Elliot is now a member of up-and-coming Rock ‘n’ Roll four-piece Blissed, switching from bass to guitar for the new band.

The rest of the group, who aren’t currently signed to a record label, consists of Matthew Cross, from Macclesfield on guitar and vocals, Finn Robertson, also from Macclesfield on bass and Carlisle’s Jack Burton on drums.

Since forming, Blissed’s music has been well received by music fans in Manchester and further afield.

Elliot explained that the band came together through uni, and why it was decided to move him on to guitar

He said: “Three of us go to the same uni and then Finn knows Matt from home, so we started jamming together.

“I originally played bass, but we thought to expand the sound we would bring Finn in on bass and I would move to guitar as well.

“It was all about dedicating part of the week to the band, whether it was going to gigs or practicing we all had that same sort of idea and that’s how we moved along quicker than other bands.

“We get on really well, even when we’re just driving down to gigs it’s good fun.

“We’ve been busy, especially this year it’s been super busy but that’s how we like it.

“We’ve had over 25 gigs and along with two big releases.

“It’s a long way from Blind Buffalo, it was always nice to play with them, but this just feels more professional.

“We’re looking forward to the next year, we’ve got a few gigs booked already.

“You just have to keep going and not stop and look at it.”

With a new band comes a new sound – for Elliot, Blissed is a departure from the indie-rock stylings of Blind Buffalo to a heavier, much more rock ‘n’ roll sound.

Blissed’s musical influences range from the psychedelia of the 1960s through 70s prog-rock and the raw energy of punk, and those influences shine through on their new EP.

The band came together at the end of 2016, and two years on they recently released their debut EP The Speed of Life, which came out in November, feeling that they were making their best music together.

The four track record has been well received, and even got some national attention, with air-time on DJ Steve Lamacq’s show on BBC Radio 6 Music.

The Speed of Life has been available on all major streaming platforms and available from iTunes since November 23, while physical copies are also available from the band’s website at www.musicglue.com/blissed.

Elliot added: “It’s rock and roll predominantly. We have the more psychedelic edge on the new EP, I think the last track, You Can’t Have Anything, changes the sound of the band a bit and it’s something we’re looking to explore more.

“We’re really happy with the EP.

“We’ve had some really good feedback, and it was played on Radio 6 which was amazing.

“It took a lot of time. We recorded it then had a month or so to polish it.

“We’re looking to go back into the studio in March, for a release in the spring.”

October saw the band tied up with recording their EP at Manchester’s Alright Studios but they still managed to get out and play a few gigs throughout the month.

In fact, touring and gigging as much as they possibly can has always been a big part of Blissed’s career together.

After forming two years ago, they spent some time building a set of material, before they played their first gig at the Jolly Sailor in Matthew and Finn’s home town of Macclesfield.

Since then they’ve toured all over the country, playing in Manchester, Newcastle, Sheffield, Glasgow, London, Liverpool and Leeds.

Their latest batch of gigs saw the band return to Macclesfield, playing at Mash Guru on December 30 to mark the end of a successful year.

Blissed plan to continue touring before heading back to the studio in March to record their next EP.

In the hope of making 2019 even better, the group have already been hard at work applying for slots at various festivals in the summer, and there could be a chance to catch Blissed in action in the North-East.

Elliot continued: “We’ve got links with a couple of festivals.

“There’s one in Newcastle, called Hit the North Festival which is local so we’d really love to play.

“We’ve also got the possibility of Kendal Calling, but it’s early stages for the festivals at the moment.

“We’ll keep gigging, we’ll take any gig opportunity.

“We’re loving playing and travelling to all these cities and it’s nice to have good feedback.

“That’s what it’s all about.”