Brendan and Declan Murphy, the duo behind the group “4 of Us” continue to mine the rich vein of their Newry upbringing, originally recounted in their 2016 album, Sugar Island. They remain heavily influenced by their past, as depicted in their 10th album, Crescent Nights, a masterpiece shaped in an entirely up-to-date way through their regular live streams during the global pandemic. These sessions have offered supporters a behind-the-scenes look at their innovative approach and allowed their audience to directly influence the album’s formation.
Crescent Nights springs from over a year and a half’s worth of performances on the web. Their careful effort has resulted in a body of work as articulate and moving as any previous efforts. The pair, despite having experienced significant commercial success in their early years with their debut album, Songs for the Tempted, nearly three and a half decades prior, launch Crescent Nights with a flashback to their turbulent youth and the fictitious St Gabriel’s Drive. The opening track depicts the escalating cycle of violence and hatred where “siblings scheme as their mother sheds tears”.
Brendan Murphy, the lyricist, exhibits his narrative prowess in the fondly remembered story of Murphy’s Place, their father’s gambling shop where they were employed in their adolescent years, a detail recalled with phrases like, “nicotine-stained fingers seeking another win”. Referencing their past, the title song nostalgically brings to mind balmy “snakebite” evenings.
It’s important to note that Crescent Nights is not simply a nostalgic reflection. One can see Brendan Murphy’s soul laid bare in the intense, heartfelt Hurt People. Some songs are heartfelt odes to those they hold dear. Carry Me to the Water is a poignant homage to their father, recounting a time when amid violent scenes and chaos, their curfew was set by martial law. Moreover, a strong feeling of longing pervades the melancholic strumming of Tree of Life. Their songwriting continues to resonate, despite the changing times and their own evolving lives.
John Creedon reflects, mentioning he was continually dispatched not due to lack of affection, but rather their inability to handle him. Scattered amongst his memories lie an assortment of romantic melodies, notably ‘I Know You Know (Me So Well)’ and the concluding track of the album, ‘Miracle Every Morning’. The latter, a subtly strummed tune with words that could easily be cliché – expressing the feeling of witnessing a new miracle each morning as he wakes up to his love – if it weren’t delivered with such sincere honesty.