Michael Knight - 'I'm Not Entirely Clear How I Ended Up Like This' (yesboyicecream)

Berlin-based Irishman and protagonist of Michael Knight, Richard Murphy, delivers an album rich in sweeping strings, haunting harmonies and dramatic mood swings.

Richard Murphy, protagonist of Michael Knight, is a sensational Irish songwriting talent.

'I'm Not Entirely Clear How I Ended Up Like This' is a hugely impressive record that brims with self-deprecating melancholy, a dark, caustic wit, irresistible melodies and lashings of quirky chamber pop chord progressions.

Murphy's melodramatic sense of humour and glorious knack of penning perfect piano-permeated pop songs will no doubt see him compared to other flamboyant songsters such as Neil Hannon, Stephen Merritt and Rufus Wainwright.

'I'm Not Entirely Clear….' is a daring, sophisticated pop record that oozes oodles of charm, wisdom, humour, and above all, heart. Joined by an all-star cast of Cora Venus Lunny, Nina Hynes and Miriam Ingram, Murphy proves he is a sensational song-writing talent as his lyrical themes blur the lines between fact and fantasy over eleven tasty vignettes troubled with everything from TV soap-operas ('Coronation Street') to snobbish dating woes ('You People Are Idiots'), and impressing record company executives ('Reading Old Diary Entries').

With lyrical couplets at his disposable such as "Her skin gives me pleasure/ I'll ditch her at my leisure/ But I'll be polite when I tell her/ My sweet, meet… my new lover", Murphy could easily be mistaken for a modern day Noel Coward.

And any musician who can write a spine-tingling pop tune from three minutes of nothing but "Aah aah aahs" ('Dumbshow') has to be doing something right. 'I'm Not Entirely Clear How I Ended Up Like This' is one of the year's most alluring pop records.

(4 out of 5)

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