David Murphy’s ‘Cuimhne Ghlinn: Explorations in Irish Music for Pedal Steel Guitar’ is an incredibly confident debut album. Balanced against its elegance and the dreamlike sound of his pedal steel is a quietly adventurous spirit that is beautifully judged and unpretentious—an extraordinarily great album.
What a great idea this is. For his debut album, Irish-based multi-instrumentalist David Murphy has reimagined old Irish harp tunes and arranged them for pedal steel, with accompaniments from a host of musicians and instruments. On songs like the lovely traditional waltz Cití na g Cumann, the moist, dreamlike sound of the pedal steel is joined by reverb hit bowed strings by Laura McFadden and Steve Wickham, plus plucked harp by Alannah Thornburgh and subtle piano from Rory McCarthy, giving the sweet melody layers and textures that never threaten to detract from the spirit of the tune.
Even more effective is Seán O’Duibhir a’Ghleanna, a stunning air originating from the Cromwelliam wars in the 17th century. I just love an air; the looser structure of the music gives it a more ethereal taste that is accentuated here by the ghostly swirls (more in the background on this piece) of the pedal steel. The star of the song is Anthony Ruby and his Uilleann pipes, a high, unnerving timbre that sounds almost electronically manipulated, really giving the whole tune an otherworldly feel (aided by the strange electronic melting pot sound seeing things out) that is pleasantly at odds with the rest of the album.
Another beauty is An Séic Seoigheach, a patiently played piece that is simpler in instrumental structure than Seán O’Duibhir a’Ghleanna, with the pedal steel solo here aside from some very subtle sympathetic synth notes. This minimalism gives the song a stark quality that allows space around the melody and lets the pedal steel notes linger long before they decay. There is a quietly adventurous spirit to the music on this album that manages to add a different character to each of the traditional songs it focuses on without losing the essence of the piece, itself an impressive feat.
Tunes like Cuimhne Ghlinn bring the piano to the fore for the first part before a delicate drum machine beat comes in, with cello and brushes of percussion joining electronic sounds to build a spacious, surprising and wonderfully balanced tune. The whole thing is beautifully judged, elegant and unpretentious. As an album, this feels less like a debut and more like the confident effort you’d expect from a well-established artist. An extraordinarily great album.
Set for release on 19th April 2024 on the Rollercoaster Records label and presented visually with stunning artwork by Craig Carry, it will be available on 180-gram Vinyl, CD and Digital from all major platforms and retailers.
Pre-order now via Bandcamp.
David will celebrate the launch of the album at Coughlan’s, Cork City, on Thursday, 18th April 2024. Tickets are on sale now – coughlans.ie (Sold Out)