June 5, 2009

‘Once upon a time in Ireland’ is Ciaran Murphy’s full length follow up to “Verbal hand grenade”, the mini album Shite’n’Onions reviewed last year – not much different here – just more songs in the same style – so if your too lazy to look up the last review – Ciaran Murphy is an Irish protest singer songwriter – sort of Christy Moore with an armalight, a molotov cocktail and a deadly aim. One of the things I like most about Ciaran Murphy is he is the real thing – South Armagh raised , Belfast based (unlike some middle class protest signers from wealthy towns in Connecticut doing the rounds at the moment). Hypocrites lookout. Ciaran Murphy is armed and pointing his guitar right at you.

Ciaran Murphy is a singer/songwriter/one man acoustic hand grenade from West Belfast. A protest singer in the finest tradition and politically sharp as a syringe needle hanging on razor wire. Murphy on this 7 track release points out the often ugly truths of Irish life, asks difficult questions and never pulls his punches. Akin to Damien Dempsey with pin pulled out.

2008