It Sounded Like A F#@ing Dying Cat | Caleb J. Murphy

One day I was sitting on my porch jamming on my guitar and singing. But apparently I sounded like a dying feline.

It was a beautiful day, so I was enjoying the freedom I had to sit on my porch and make music. I don’t remember the song I was playing, but I do remember it was in my upper register.

For those of you who sing, you know that the higher the note is, the louder your voice tends to get.

As I played and sang, I saw my neighbor stick his head out from around the bushes that separated our houses (about 25 yards away). I stopped playing, waved and smiled. He quickly waved and disappeared behind the bushes.

I didn’t think anything of it and continued playing guitar and singing.

Maybe 15 minutes later, I was helping this neighbour and his wife, both in their 60s or 70s, load something out of their car. “Was that you over there?” my neighbour asked me, as the three of us stood at the trunk of their car. “Yeah,” I said with a smile, waiting for the compliments to rain down upon my head.

“Oh, I was wondering what that was,” he said with a smirk. “It sounded like a f#*@ing dying cat.” His wife hit him in the arm and gave me some reassuring words.But I wasn’t bothered by it.

“I could come over and play for you sometime,” I said, returning his smirk with my own.

This is a true story. And look, I didn’t give up on music. Even though someone told me to my face that I sound like a f#*@ing dying cat.

So how do you keep going after something like this?

For me, I think it’s all about making honest music that I’m proud of -- music that I consider successful before I even release it.

And that’s how I feel about my upcoming album, Everybody Breaks (which drops August 16). I’m completely happy with it and I’m not looking for anyone’s validation. I just want people to hear it.

But at the same time, I’m still scared to release this album. I’m scared because it’s the most personal album I’ve ever made.

Let me explain why…

I started recording this album April of 2017 where I lived in Western Pennsylvania.

In July of that year, my wife and I adopted a baby boy from Texas. And about a week after we adopted him, he had a stroke.

That was the beginning of a whirlwind. And it was the start of me learning a lesson: everybody breaks, so nobody can live alone.

We needed the people who showed up at the hospital. We needed our friends who let us stay at their house for a month. We needed the people who cooked food for us when we got home. We couldn’t live alone.

In the following days, family and friends helped us out in too many ways to count. And then in March of 2018, we moved to Austin, Tx., a place where we had literally two friends and zero family. If you’ve ever moved, you know how stressful it can be, especially moving to a different state.

But almost immediately after we arrived, we got connected with a community that was reckless in the way they cared for us. Right when we needed it. All this to say, this album hits home for me.

It was like life said to me, “Oh, you want to record an album about how everybody breaks and nobody can live alone? Alright, let’s see you live that out.”

And I did. I still am. And now I’m 100% behind this album. The message, the songs, all of it. It’s a different and personal and weird and fun and sad album. And it means so much to me.

This album is basically my life over the past couple years. And that openness makes it a little scary to release.

But I think this message of community and relationships is one that everyone -- especially me -- needs to hear. It’s a reality we should all accept.

Because everybody breaks. And nobody can live alone.

On August 16, Everybody Breaks will be available on literally every streaming platform you can think of.

- Caleb