Rob Murphy serves up an intoxicating mix of sounds and styles on his debut album Through A Whiskey Haze — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
Written and recorded in a home studio during an uncertain period of lockdown in 2020, the 11-track album is more ambitious and adventurous than your typical singer-songwriter solo effort. Over the course of 47 diverse and compelling minutes, Through A Whiskey Haze offers a bold mix of styles and sonics — organic and electronic, traditional and contemporary, familiar and experimental acoustic and electric, lyrical and instrumental, personal and universal — all united via Murphy’s accessible approach and nimble musicianship.
A second-generation Irishman splitting his time between Ireland and the U.K., Murphy’s first inspiration came during a trip back to the Emerald Isle. “The first song, Nights, was written in Cork Airport on the way back to Manchester after a weekend at home in Ireland,” he says. “It was March 2020, and I was getting ready for a St. Patrick’s Day gig. At the time, I had the feeling a story was brewing.”
Reflecting the uncertainty of life during Covid, the album chronicles a personal journey from doubt, uncertainty, and introspection to a hopeful tomorrow. “Life in a good year can be tough, but the isolation of 2020 was a challenge, for sure,” Murphy says. “I believe that people pulling together in adversity gives the kind of strength that lifts everyone. Writing this album has been very cathartic, along with the learning process of recording and producing. For me, this chronicles a journey from uncertainty and doubt into hope and optimism as in the last track, I’m Free. You have to look for the silver linings.”
Listen to Through A Whiskey Haze below and follow Rob Murphy on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
