With a unique blend of acoustic folk, jazz, pop, bluegrass, funk and the avant-garde, New Haven, CT duo PRESTER JOHN has a sound that is entirely their own. Formed in 2008 by underground guitar-hero Shawn Persinger, Prester John also showcases the musical talents of David Miller on mandolin and vocals.

Taylor Guitars’ Wood and Steel once wrote, “Persinger has defined his career by playing hard-to-define music.” One minute you’re hearing a pop/rock song the next you’re listening to music that could have been composed by Stravinsky or Frank Zappa. And certainly Prester John’s
authenticity is difficult to match; their bluegrass repertoire sounds straight out of Appalachia (no doubt due to Persinger’s West Virginia roots) and their swing tunes recall the bygone days of The Hot Club of France.

The PRESTER JOHN sound has developed over several years of Shawn’s solo touring and performing (playing on 5 continents, in 34 countries and countless cities). With the addition of the extremely versatile David Miller the possibilities are endless.

“This duo has started with a backlog of Shawn’s songs but the future of our sound is wide open,” says Miller. “We both have an interest in different types of music and we also have the ability to play many styles. Whether it’s the simplicity of a two and four backbeat or the complexity of an atonal melody. Nothing is dismissed.” It is that eclectic taste and skill that makes PRESTER JOHN a force to be reckoned with.