Twin Cats – Up North (2008)

Some Monday listening for y’all today in the form of Joseph Murphy’s “Twin Cats“.  While Murphy is not new to creating and performing music, this is a bit of a new project for Murphy.  “Up North” as an album feels and listens like a transition to something new, a beginning of Twin Cats itself (both literally and figuratively).

From the opening line of “If This Were A Postcard”, it tells of the recent relocation of Murphy to Chicago (which for some, may just be “Up North“).  This real life relocation launched a new era of Murphy’s – changing the name for his musical identity to “Twin Cats” from previously unassuming “Aim”.  With this brought a bit of expansion in his sound to include more range of sound on his debut album as Twin Cats, almost as if Chicago breathed new life into him.  In “Up North” there is traditional singer songwriter, indie, garage, shoegaze and even a bit of post rock – this album definitely spans across the spectrum of where I feel indie music is heading (or has already become).

While I tend to lean towards the more traditional folk, you can find this in tracks like the incredible “False Advertising” and “The River”.  This is not all this album offers as mentioned earlier – don’t be afraid, as we get some guitar garage in the form of “I Was Wrong” then all the way to ambient with the title track “Up North”  and “A Night at the Optimist’s Club” which have soundscapes of some of the best post rock around.

As far as current Twin Cats information, the band has expanded to include Jake Acosta, Kyle Klipowicz, and Matt Fields.  The quartet are now creating/working on a new album as a band which is a new adventure for Murphy from his solo effort on “Up North”.   That solo effort actually came to life with the help of these new band mates – Jake gave creative input and Kyle mixed the album.  To round out the quartet, Matt Fields was a formerly in a band with Murphy a couple of years ago and is also a roommate!  In Murphy’s words, it was kind of a natural progression to have them join in the band.

Expect a few shows this fall and winter, and sometime after the new album is officially finished, do a long tour – as a band, which is something both Murphy and myself are looking forward to.  Remember Canada for the tour!

Enjoy a couple of tracks below – find yourself on the Twin Cats MySpace page, or Virb Page.  Also, please consider picking up a copy of “Up North” at the Orchid Collective site – make up a great price/donation, get a great album.

~Smansmith