Artists
Biography
At the conclusion of his 1992 "Holy Smoke" world tour, Peter Murphy knew he was at a crossroads. After working with his longtime backing band The 100 Men, beginning with his '88 solo album "LOVE HYSTERIA" - the artistic energy had dissipated. So he followed his gut instinct: he dissolved the band and moved from his native England to Turkey along with his family. Questions regarding a creative future had to be left, for the moment, unresolved. The immediate need was for a new view. "I set out to burn bridges, to give myself a feeling of freshness and vitality", says Murphy. "That burning of bridges went as far as - potentially - accepting that I'd finished in the music business. It was a purging period - making a clean break. The splitting up of the band although as much for economic reasons as any, seemed to be an appropriate part of that. I wanted to put myself in the position where I psychologically freed myself from being in that album-tour cycle and being PETER MURPHY.
Perceptions of such things can change ones' hopes and desires and motivations." A year after moving to Turkey, Murphy began to explore the artistic dividends of his personal and professional liberation. The rewards came in the form of melodies, a set of strong vocal statements, and, eventually, rough draft demo recordings for what would become his fifth solo album, "CASCADE". "Part of me wondered whether my involvement with making records was simply a result of being connected to a culture that propagated that", says the Northampton born Murphy. "So there I was in a totally different culture, without any connections to the entertainment world or the media output I had access to in London. I didn't have any obvious outside influence to write songs.
In Turkey, Peter - the former Bauhaus and Dalis Car vocalist and co-writer, an acclaimed live performer, a successful solo artist, and considered by many to be a musical pioneer - was also removed from an association with a public image or external notions about his life and work. Instead, he was this man who'd written some songs and wanted to take a crack at making an album"I realised I didn't need to be in a frame of mind of being an artist or having a self-image of being an artist", says Murphy. "The songs happened anyway. It confirmed my belief that writing - like painting or any art form - comes from a very silent place that's not dependent on outside stimulus. It was like rediscovering the initial innocence and purity that's there when you join your first band".
Much of Peter's adeptness as an artist has come from his ability to find and assemble the optimum comrades to see a project through. It began after the 1983 break-up of Bauhaus when he joined with former Japan bassist Mick Karn to record '84's "THE WAKING HOUR" as Dalis Car. The trend continued when Murphy recruited guitarist keyboardist Howard Hughes to record his '86 solo debut "SHOULD THE WORLD FAIL TO FALL APART". He picked up with The 100 Men at that point for a string of albums that included "LOVE HYSTERIA", "DEEP", and '92's "HOLY SMOKE". As for the legacy of Bauhaus, the group's influential sound and vision continues to this day. The "BAUHAUS 1979 -1983 VOLUME ONE" has been selling briskly since recently being made available in the States - a further indication of the band's indelible mark on contemporary music. Twelve years after the group split, they continue to be discovered by new audiences of new devotees. For Peter, however, the past isn't nearly as interesting as the present and where he's headed. Wherever that is, you know it's his gut - and his heart - that will get him there.
Perceptions of such things can change ones' hopes and desires and motivations." A year after moving to Turkey, Murphy began to explore the artistic dividends of his personal and professional liberation. The rewards came in the form of melodies, a set of strong vocal statements, and, eventually, rough draft demo recordings for what would become his fifth solo album, "CASCADE". "Part of me wondered whether my involvement with making records was simply a result of being connected to a culture that propagated that", says the Northampton born Murphy. "So there I was in a totally different culture, without any connections to the entertainment world or the media output I had access to in London. I didn't have any obvious outside influence to write songs.
In Turkey, Peter - the former Bauhaus and Dalis Car vocalist and co-writer, an acclaimed live performer, a successful solo artist, and considered by many to be a musical pioneer - was also removed from an association with a public image or external notions about his life and work. Instead, he was this man who'd written some songs and wanted to take a crack at making an album"I realised I didn't need to be in a frame of mind of being an artist or having a self-image of being an artist", says Murphy. "The songs happened anyway. It confirmed my belief that writing - like painting or any art form - comes from a very silent place that's not dependent on outside stimulus. It was like rediscovering the initial innocence and purity that's there when you join your first band".
Much of Peter's adeptness as an artist has come from his ability to find and assemble the optimum comrades to see a project through. It began after the 1983 break-up of Bauhaus when he joined with former Japan bassist Mick Karn to record '84's "THE WAKING HOUR" as Dalis Car. The trend continued when Murphy recruited guitarist keyboardist Howard Hughes to record his '86 solo debut "SHOULD THE WORLD FAIL TO FALL APART". He picked up with The 100 Men at that point for a string of albums that included "LOVE HYSTERIA", "DEEP", and '92's "HOLY SMOKE". As for the legacy of Bauhaus, the group's influential sound and vision continues to this day. The "BAUHAUS 1979 -1983 VOLUME ONE" has been selling briskly since recently being made available in the States - a further indication of the band's indelible mark on contemporary music. Twelve years after the group split, they continue to be discovered by new audiences of new devotees. For Peter, however, the past isn't nearly as interesting as the present and where he's headed. Wherever that is, you know it's his gut - and his heart - that will get him there.