Roisin Murphy 2011 Ruby Blue samples

Róisín Marie Murphy (Irish pronunciation: [roːˈʃʲiːnʲ], English: /roʊˈʃiːn/; born 5 July 1973) is an Irish singer-songwriter and record producer, known for her electronic style.

Murphy first came to note as part of the electronic music duo Moloko. Her partner in the band was then-boyfriend Mark Brydon. After the two ended their romantic relationship, Murphy released her debut solo album Ruby Blue, written and produced with Matthew Herbert, in 2005. Her second solo album Overpowered was released in 2007.* 1 Early life
* 2 Career
o 2.1 Moloko (1994–2003)
* 3 Solo career (2004–present)
o 3.1 Ruby Blue
o 3.2 Overpowered
o 3.3 Third album
* 4 Discography
o 4.1 Studio albums
* 5 References
* 6 External links
Murphy was brought up in Arklow, County Wicklow, Ireland. When she was twelve, her family moved to Manchester in the UK. Murphy embraced 1960s fashions from going with her mother, an antique dealer, to car boot sales and charity shops. She concealed her singing voice, not wanting other people to know she "sounded like Elaine Paige" when she herself enjoyed listening to the likes of Sonic Youth and Pixies instead

After three years of living in Manchester, her parents divorced and moved back to Ireland Murphy insisted on remaining alone in the UK because she did not think that her mother had the strength to continue taking care of her Murphy lived with her best friend for a year, until she could receive Housing Benefit and live in a nearby flat She was bullied at school and befriended a group of "weird boys who wore black" and who listened to the Jesus and Mary Chain. She enrolled in a sixth form college at seventeen and later considered going to art school She moved to Sheffieldwhere she began going to nightclubs and was inspired by the Vivienne Westwood designs she saw at Trash

Murphy met Mark Brydon in 1994 at a party, using the chat-up line "Do you like my tight sweater? See how it fits my body Brydon brought Murphy to his Fon Studios, where he auditioned her voice on tape, and liked Murphy's theatrical delivery. They began dating, and the newly-formed Moloko were signed to Echo Records, releasing their debut album Do You Like My Tight Sweater? the following year The album combined trip hop and funk with electronic dance music, using a more humorous approach than some of their contemporaries The follow-up I Am Not a Doctor covered similar musical ground and a remix by Boris Dlugosch of "Sing It Back" enjoyed international success, and would go on to be featured on more than 110 compilation albums. In place of paying Dlugosch, Murphy helped write "Never Enough which reached number sixteen on the UK Singles Chart in June 2001

October 2000 saw the release of Moloko's third album Things to Make and Do, for which they employed more live instrumentation, and more multifaceted arrangements by keyboardist Eddie Stevens. The album reached number three on the UK Albums Chart, and "The Time Is Now" became their most successful British single, reaching number twoMurphy and Brydon broke up but were contractually obligated to deliver further albums. After the 2003 release of Statues, Brydon backed out of much of the album's promotion, so Murphy handled most of it herself. Although no official statement was issued pertaining to Moloko's future, Murphy had this to say in a Q Magazine interview in May 2005 (which was reiterated in the review of Ruby Blue in July 2005):
“ We left it on good terms after a very successful tour. We shook hands, said, "See you later", and haven't spoken since. I don't know what Mark thinks of this record or what he's doing. I don't know if we will or we won't reunite. Myself, I don't not want to. ”

Murphy began doing solo work while still in Moloko, which included her contributions to the works of other artists including Handsome Boy Modeling School and Boris Dlugosch, for whom she sang on the track "Never Enough," which became a huge club hit, hitting the top three of the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart.

Main article: Ruby Blue (album)
Murphy at the Orange Music Experience Festival, Ruby Blue tour, Haifa, 27 June 2005

Murphy recorded her first official solo material in 2004 with producer Matthew Herbert, who had previously done remixes for Moloko. She had wanted to work with him again, commenting that "it felt very natural…because Matthew makes things seem quicker and easier After the pair had recorded a few songs, Murphy found that she enjoyed working with Herbert, and her label Echo Records let her work freely without any deadline. When she presented them the album, they found it odd and did not hear any songs that would make successful singles. The A&R division suggested that Murphy make some changes to make it more radio-friendly. Murphy refused, stating that she "wanted it to be as pure as possible." The label later came to support her.

Murphy released her debut album Ruby Blue in June 2005. Prior to this, tracks from the album were made available on three limited edition, vinyl-only releases: Sequins #1, Sequins #2 and Sequins #3. The release of the EP's was to precede a London exhibition by artist Simon Henwood, featuring paintings of Murphy in various sequined outfits (some of Henwood's paintings are used as cover images for the record jackets). The titling is also a pun on "sequins" and the related word "sequence". Henwood also directed the two video clips for the album's singles ("If We're in Love" and "Sow into You").

Ruby Blue samples sounds made by everyday objects and actions, including cosmetics, brass mice, dancing and ornaments. It mixes the electronic music for which Moloko was known with jazz and pop styles. Although the album was a commercial failure it drew mainly positive reviews; Pitchfork Media called it "perfect, the ultimate combination of human warmth and technological know-how