Peter
Murphy is an enigmatic personality who is tough to pin down. The
first two decades of his career form a somewhat linear path of
development, but in the 21st century, his activity has been varied
and unpredictable. Some of the resulting work is forgettable, but
other parts are all too easily overlooked. This article aims to cover
the breadth of this output and evaluate each release's relative
merits.
After
co-founding and departing Bauhaus
and Dali's Car, Murphy spent the rest of the 80s making
keyboard-driven alternative and post-punk music with a mystical bent
and a tendency for the grandiose. In the 90s, he gradually steered
towards a more haunting, expansive, and electronic sound. When
Bauhaus reunited for a tour in 1998, they recorded two songs (a cover
of Dead Can Dance's "Severance" and new composition "The
Dog's a Vapour") that fit well into this trend. After the
reunion fell apart, Murphy released the perfunctory compilation Wild
Birds (2000) and the excellent live album Alive Just for Love
(2001).
At
that point, it seemed that Murphy was at a crossroads. Having proven
himself as a solo artist and briefly redeemed his glory as the
frontperson of Bauhaus, there was no clear step forward from there.
He could have gracefully retired. Instead, he took the far more
interesting road of experimenting with his sound and taking more
risks with his career.
His first studio album since Cascade (1995) was Dust (2002), a fusion of traditional Turkish music with modern electronics. It's Murphy's most unique and distinctive album, and for the open-minded and patient listener, it's a pleasure to absorb its meandering, obscure beauty. However, it's a very long and subtle album that is apt to cause the listener to lose focus. The album wasn't quite a success and it was somewhat confusing for long-time fans.
Unsurprisingly,
Murphy's next album, Unshattered (2004), was a blunt
return to rock music. It was perhaps intended to be a return to form,
especially with the appearance of Bauhaus drummer Kevin Haskins and
two members of Jane's Addiction, but it was not a turn for the
better. The exaggerated modern rock production style immediately
sounded dated, and the songwriting was not Murphy's best.
In
2005, Bauhaus reunited once more, but it wasn't until 2008 that they
released Go Away White. By that time, they'd already
very publicly broken up again, and the album appeared with little
fanfare. Furthermore, the album was apparently unfinished and came
across somewhat rough. There's an undeniable appeal to the unusual
looseness of their compositions, but many tracks have sections that
seem to be missing parts. Mostly notably, at one point in "Mirror
Remains", Murphy is heard informing Daniel Ash of the
opportunity to play a solo, and Ash responds that his minimal part is
the solo. Somehow, it's still one of the best songs.
Go
Away White sounds like a conscious decision to be more than a
sequel to Burning from the Inside. It's practically a
completely different band than the one that recorded the first four
Bauhaus albums. In retrospect, it sounds like a Peter Murphy solo
album with the best backing band he could ask for, i.e. Love &
Rockets. Indeed, there are more traces of the sound of Love &
Rockets (or even Daniel Ash's solo work) than there are of the
original Bauhaus albums. If you consider the album in the light of a
supergroup collaboration instead of a continuance of something over
20 years old, it makes more sense and seems like a more successful
creation. Still, the inclusion of "The Dog's a Vapour" from
the 1998 reunion seems out of place and feels like cheating. The
album starts fairly strong, but that track and the forgettable
"Zikir" bring the album to a disappointing conclusion.
Murphy
toured in 2008 and 2009 without a new album to promote. (I saw his performance in Hannover on that tour.)
He eventually released a series of iTunes-only covers across 2009,
and he performed those songs on tour in addition to a few other
covers and some new songs that would later appear on Ninth.
Murphy has always been fond of a good cover (especially when written
by David Bowie), so these so-called "Secret
Covers" were not particularly surprising. Unfortunately,
though, they weren't very good, albeit in each case for different
reasons. "Instant Karma" comes off as cheesy and overdone
with backing vocals that jar with Murphy's aesthetic. "Space
Oddity" is understated, lackluster, and absent enough beauty to
make up for the missing energy. "Transmission" is by the
numbers, except that Murphy's vocal adjustments only serve to
distract and detract. "Hurt" (with Trent Reznor) is good, but feels too much like
a copy of the Johnny Cash version. In each case, Murphy's take offers
no improvements over the original.
Once
Ninth was finally released in 2011, Murphy's recent arc
started to make more sense. In retrospect, Go Away White seems
like a precursor to Ninth, and the covers were perhaps just a
warm-up and reassertion of his presence. However, Ninth is far
more polished than either to the point of appearing artificial and
overdone. Moving away from Murphy's typical moody and arty work, it's
another try at a predictable alternative rock sound, but thankfully
it is nowhere near as dated and embarrassing as Unshattered.
It's perhaps not as idiosyncratic as other Murphy albums, but it's a
semi-successful change of pace, which is invigorating and encouraging
for an artist with a 30-year back catalog.
Ninth
starts strong, but loses steam quickly. Songs like "Velocity
Bird", "Seesaw Sway", and "I Spit Roses" are
great exercises in modern rock, with powerful vocals and nice synth
touches. "Never Fall Out" is a really good ballad with
expressive depth and subtlety. However, "Secret Silk Society"
drags on despite the eerie atmosphere, and "Créme de la Créme"
is an outlier that would fit in more with Murphy's dramatic older
style except that it would be entirely overshadowed. The rest are
mostly hard-edged rock songs that don't quite work. One senses that
Murphy was trying hard to have an aggressive edge, but it doesn't
come off well. Ironically, one of these songs is called "Uneven
& Brittle".
Shortly
after the album's release, with little fanfare, Murphy released an EP named The Secret Bees of Ninth.
Unexpectedly, that EP is everything I wanted from Ninth with
none of the try-hard fakery. The four unique tracks are all moody,
introspective, haunting ballads in the vein of "Never Fall Out".
(The full version of "Secret Silk Society" is nothing
particularly special, though, and "Seesaw Sway" is entirely
redundant and out of place here.) The EP is less powerful than Ninth,
but it makes for a much more consistent and enjoyable listen.
In
this same time frame, Murphy had announced that he was reuniting with
Mick Karn to work on a new Dali's Car album. Shortly thereafter, Karn
was diagnosed with cancer, and he died in early 2011 before the album
could be completed. However, Murphy managed to salvage an EP with
some assistance (including drumming and mixing by Karn's former Japan
bandmate Steve Jansen). In Glad Aloneness eventually
came out in 2012, featuring two new compositions, two covers, and a
reworked version of "Artemis" from their original 1984
album. It's disappointingly brief, but what is there (especially the
two new songs) is great. There's a lot of promise, and it's quite sad
to think of what might have been. Evaluating the EP in the context of
Murphy's other recent work, it fits right in, but much like with Go
Away White, it sounds like a distinctively Murphy-centered work
with a top-notch collaborator.
In
2013, apparently disappointed with the undignified end of Bauhaus,
Murphy announced a tour with his own backing band that would (almost)
exclusively feature Bauhaus songs. This was loosely connected to the
35th anniversary of the band. I didn't make it to any part of the
tour, but an official live recording of the LA show, Mr.
Moonlight Tour, was released in assorted formats in 2014 and
2015. It presents Murphy taking the easy road, mostly just playing
the same greatest hits. He awkwardly introduces several of the songs
while the band plays the introductions, and while his voice is
strong, he doesn't improve over any other versions. The band
similarly do justice to the songs, but also take no risks and keep it
reverential. The album (or at least the digital version I listened
to) also has unnecessary and disruptive fades between each song. In
every single way, it is inferior to Gotham
(1998), the defining
document of the reunited Bauhaus on stage, as well as Press the
Eject and Give Me the Tape
(1982) and just about
any other live album of the original era.
Murphy's
last release of new music as of writing was Lion in
2014, produced and co-written by Youth (Martin Glover). Featuring a
heavier and dancier sound, it takes the energy, aggression, and
polish of Ninth and pushes it even further, although in a more
processed and less rock direction. It makes for a rather dense and
cramped listen, as opposed to Murphy's usual celestial expansiveness.
It's another interesting change of pace, but again has a feeling of
trying hard to be edgy and modern without being very successful at
it. Worst of all, in contemporaneous interviews, he repeatedly
described the album in arrogant terms as vastly dynamic and diverse.
At best, that was irony, because the album is the least varied of any
that Murphy has ever been involved with.
A
year later, Murphy released Remixes from Lion, which
consists of seven extended remixes by Youth, three outtakes, and one
"ambient" remix by Richard Thorne. Youth's remixes are
unexciting and not substantially different than the originals. The
three outtakes are at least somewhat interesting, and they actually
provide some of the dynamics and diversity missing from Lion
itself. "Gabriel" is a good song, but the other two are
excessively lengthy and unspectacular.
Since
then, Murphy released Wild Birds Live Tour in 2015, a
retread of the Wild Birds compilation set on stage in LA from
2000. It would be fine, except that it is redundant and suffers from
what sounds like bizarre compression on the drums and applause. It's
incredibly distracting. The bassist flubs a few parts, and Murphy
even has to stop in the middle of "Indigo Eyes" because his
hand was cramping. At least that part is mildly amusing, and I'm glad
they left it in instead of trying to fix it up somehow. However, the
album stands in the shadow of Alive Just for Live, Murphy's
brilliant live album from 2001 of another LA show from later in 2000.
Where that album rearranged the songs for a creative electro-acoustic
setting with just two other musicians, this album is a straight
run-through with few variations from the norm.
Most
recently, Murphy went on the Stripped tour in 2016. (My review
of the Austin show is here.)
Of the three Murphy shows I've seen, it was my favorite.
Coincidentally, it was also somewhat similar in spirit and style to
Alive Just for Love. Although I'm getting a little tired of
Murphy's recent spate of mediocre live albums, I'm looking forward to
his upcoming Bare Boned & Sacred, a document of the
Stripped tour from a NYC show.
Murphy's
last two decades of work have been all over the place. When he takes
a chance and does something adventurous, he often succeeds. When he
plays it safe and confines himself to more conventional alternative
rock, he does himself a disservice. His attempts to be accessible and
trendy are usually his least compelling work. Conversely, when he
imbues his music with his own idiosyncratic personality, he shines
and often produces something that no one else is capable of. It also
seems that Murphy benefits from working with collaborators with their
own strong visions. Instead of mere compromise, Murphy brings out the
best in all involved parties. While another reunion of Bauhaus is
unlikely (and impossible for Dali's Car), there is still promise that
Murphy has more creative energy in him yet.
Scores:
Dust
(2002): B
Unshattered
(2004): D
Go
Away White (2008): B
"Secret
Covers" singles (2009): C
Ninth
(2011): B-
The
Secret Bees of Ninth EP (2011): A-
In
Glad Aloneness EP (2012): B+
Mr.
Moonlight Tour (2014): D
Lion
(2014): C+
Remixes from Lion (2015): D+Wild Birds Live Tour (2015): C-
