Father Murphy was an avant garde modern psychedelic band, part of the subgenre defined

Italian Occult Psychedelia Italian occult psychedelia (IOP) is a subgenre of Italian psychedelic music characterized by obscure atmospheres. Italian occult psychedelia was coined by journalist Antonio Ciarletta in an article published by Italian music magazine ''Blow Up' ...

by Antonio Ciarletta

Biography

The band emerged from the partnership of Federico Zanatta (freddie Murphy), Chiara Lee, and former drummer Vittorio Demarin. Their first album, eponymously titled, came out from Madcap Collective, one of whose founders was Zanatta. Father Murphy's second album ''Six Musicians Getting Unknown'' came out in 2005 also on Madcap Collective. The 2008 release of ''... and He told us to turn to the Sun'' (Agoo Records, USA, and Boring Machines, Italy) signaled a sudden change in the band's style and an increase in touring. The EP ''No Room for the Weak'' came out the same year, also from Aagoo and Boring Machines. In 2010 the band toured North America with

Deerhoof Deerhoof are an American musical group formed in San Francisco in 1994. They currently consist of founding drummer Greg Saunier, bassist and singer Satomi Matsuzaki, and guitarists John Dieterich and Ed Rodriguez. Beginning as an improvised noi ...

and

Xiu Xiu Xiu Xiu ( ) is an American experimental band, formed in 2002 by singer-songwriter Jamie Stewart in San Jose, California. Currently, the line-up consists of Stewart (the only constant member since formation) and Angela Seo. The band's name co ...

, and in 2012 they released a split EP with

and toured North America with them and Dirty Beaches In 2014, Father Murphy started touring with artist and animator Luca Dipierro, performing a live soundtrack to the screening of his animated short films. The show, called Paper Circus, has been presented in various cinemas and galleries across the USA, like the Hollywood Theatre in Portland, OR,

Cinefamily The Cinefamily was a non-profit cinematheque located in West Hollywood, California, at the historic Silent Movie Theatre. The Cinefamily's mission statement was to "reinvigorate the movie-going experience by fostering a spirit of community and a ...

at The Silent Movie Theatre in LA, the

Grand Illusion Cinema The Grand Illusion Cinema is the longest running independent cinema in the city of Seattle, Washington, and has become a landmark of the film community. Opened as The Movie House in 1970, the cinema became the city's first intimate arthouse and sh ...

in Seattle, WA,

Spectacle Theater Spectacle Theater is a collectively run, independent movie theater that operates out of a small space in Williamsburg, Brooklyn in New York, United States. History Spectacle Theater opened in September 2010 at 124 S. 3rd Street in Brooklyn in ...

and Millennium Film Workshop in Brooklyn, NY. In 2015 the band released the trilogy of the Cross, comprising ''Calvary'' (Blue Tapes, U.K.), ''Croce'' (

The Flenser The Flenser (also known as Flenser Records) is a San Francisco-based record label specializing in experimental music. Notable bands that work with or have worked with The Flenser include: Have a Nice Life, Botanist, Deafheaven, Wreck and Refe ...

, U.S.A.) and ''Lamentations'' (Backwards Records, Italy). In 2017 the duo released a collaboration EP with

Jarboe Jarboe Devereaux, known mononymously as Jarboe (), is an American singer and musician who came to prominence as a member of the New York City experimental rock band Swans in 1985. Jarboe and Michael Gira, the founder of Swans, were the two consta ...

, followed by two tours in Europe, one in the Fall and one in Spring 2018 that included

Roadburn Festival Roadburn Festival is an international music festival held in Tilburg, Netherlands every April since 1999. It was set up as a spin-off from the Roadburn music blog founded by Jurgen van den Brand and Walter Hoeijmakers. Originally focused on stone ...

, one in North America and a special show at

Dark Mofo Dark Mofo is the winter version of the MONA FOMA festival, also held in Tasmania. With many of its events taking place at night, it celebrates the darkness of the southern winter solstice and features many musical acts, large scale light insta ...

in Australia. The band released an album in 2018, ''Rising. A Requiem for Father Murphy.'' for Ramp Local and Avant! Records. On the top inside cover is written "Father Murphy 2001 - 2018". ''Rising. A Requiem for Father Murphy.'' was included in essential releases of the week by Bandcamp and in daily discovery by Spotify

Members

* Freddie Murphy – vocals, guitar (2001–present) * Chiara Lee – keyboards, vocals, percussion (2001–present)

Former members

* Vittorio "GVitron" Demarin – drums, percussion (2001–2013)

Discography

Albums

* 2003 ''Father Murphy'' (CD EP, Madcap Collective) * 2005 ''Six Musicians Getting Unknown'' (CD album, Madcap Collective) * 2008 ''...And He Told Us To Turn To The Sun'' (CD/LP album, Aagoo Records/Boring Machines) * 2011 ''Do The Sinister'' (CD collection, Box 13) * 2012 ''Anyway, Your Children Will Deny It'' (CD/LP album, Aagoo Records) * 2015 ''Croce'' (CD/LP/tape

) * 2018 ''Rising. A Requiem for Father Murphy'' (CD/2xLP album, Avant!/Ramp Local)

Singles and EPs

* 2010 ''No Room For The Weak'' (10", CD, Aagoo Records/Boring Machines) * 2014 ''Pain Is On Our Side Now'' (2x10", Aagoo Records/Boring Machines, tape No=fi Recordings) * 2015 ''Lamentations'' (10", Backwards)

Album Splits

* 2004 ''When We Were Young The World Wasn't In Your Hands'' (split with Mrs France, Madcap Collective) * 2006 ''When Ground Figures Bless In Black Tutus'' (split with Lorenzo Fragiacomo, CD, Madcap Collective) * 2011 ''Split'' (split with how much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?, 7", Aagoo Records, Avant!Records, Boring Machines, Brigadisco, La dèlirante, Madcap Collective) * 2012 ''I Luv Abortion / In The Flood With The Flood'' (split with

, 7", Aagoo)

Compilations

* 2007 ''Jardim Elétrico: A Tribute To Os Mutantes'', with the song ''Ave Lúcifer'' (CD, Madcap Collective) * 2009 ''Rare Or Not Mix 3,'' with the song ''We Were Colonists'' (File MP3, self-produced) * 2010 ''OCCII Compilation, A Mix Of Snippets 2002–2009'', with the song Go Sinister (CDr, produced by OCCII) * 2011 ''Free Music Impulse'', with the song ''You Got Worry'' (2xCD, Hybryda)

Notes

References

* *

External links

* {{URL, http://fathermurphy.org/about, Official website of Father Murphy Italian alternative rock groups