Vancouver born trumpeter Phelps moved to London aged 17 and immediately caught the attention of bassist Gary Crosby. Stints with Jazz Jamaica, Dennis Rollins' Badbone and Tomorrow's Warriors followed before co-founding Empirical.
Jay Phelps MySpace

Currently studying at the Royal Academy of Music, pianist Downes has appeared alongside Martin Speake, Acoustic Ladyland and Fraud amongst many others. He is also a member of Empirical.
Kit Downes MySpace site

Alto saxophonist Facey has worked with bands as diverse as Jazz Jamaica, Tomorrow's Warriors and Billy Jenkins' Songs of Praise after being introduced to the work of Charlie Parker at the age of 15. He is a co-founder of Empirical.
Nat Facey at Billy Jenkins' site