More Precious Dust is the professional name of singer, rapper, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist producer, Darren Murphy. He made his wide-distribution debut in 2019 with the album Starboard Flood. For nearly a decade prior to the album release, the eclectic Denver musician dropped a string of experimental tracks on SoundCloud.
The music of More Precious Dust is a genre-fluid mix of hip-hop, electronic, jazz, and trip-hop. He mixes electronic and organic elements into his own unique glitch-funk groove. Murphy cites a diverse list of producers, musicians , and rappers as inspiration for his distinct style. In September he will release the sophomore full-length album from More Precious Dust, Post Neo Emo Hop.
“Thursday Cocktail ” is the brand new single from More Precious Dust, released worldwide via all major streaming services on July 26, 2023. The song is the first of two advance singles planned from the forthcoming LP. Ambient synths and vocal samples open the track with a hypnotic riff before the beat drops on a glitch-funk jam. A slap-bass rides a hip-hop groove as syncopated percussion, samples and synths paint a jazz-infused hyperpop pastiche. On the mic, the rapper drops a fun and quirky melodic old-school freestyle.
Check out “Thursday Cocktail” below. You can also hear the track on the Deep Dive : Hip-hop and R&B playlist, or listen on your favorite streaming service. We had the chance to chat with Darren Murphy about More Precious Dust. Check out his answers to our 8 questions below. Follow the links at the end of this article to connect with the artist.
More Precious Dust | Thursday Cocktail
8 Questions with Darren Murphy of More Precious Dust
Where are you from?
I am originally from Cranston, Rhode Island. I went to school in Boston (not for music) and played a few shows there. But I moved to Denver in 2015, met my wife and I don’t foresee me ever leaving.
How long have you been making music?
I started dabbling in Ableton in 2010 and I have put out a few albums over the years on Soundcloud. But not until 2019 did I feel I had made one good enough for more mainstream streaming platforms. The album is called Starboard Flood and you can find that now on any streaming service including Spotify.
Who are the musicians involved in your project?
I write, mix, and master all my songs 100% (it’s tiring haha). I am not the best collaborator to be honest , which is a flaw in my character. On my album that gets released in the fall though, you will hear some guest female singers on a few songs.
Who are your biggest musical influences?
From an electronic standpoint, I’d say DJ Shadow, Daft Punk, Shpongle and Pretty Lights, all for different reasons of course. But I’d actually say that the biggest comp for my type of music is not an electronic artist but a band; Twenty One Pilots. Their music is pretty unique and I try to strive for that same uniqueness.
What is your greatest non-musical influence?
Literature. I love to read. And just like whenever you put on a new song, whenever you pick up a new book, you never know what type of journey it is going to take you on. I even get some of my lyrical ideas from books (is that plagiarism? Haha). My favorite author is Stephen King; maybe not the most original author to be one’s favorite but man do I get some good lyrical content from him!
What inspired you to create this project?
This is the first single off of my new album Post Neo Emo Hop, which comes out in September. I always wanted to be a rock star front man in a band when I was growing up. It took me years to realize I didn’t have the chops so I pivoted to producing electronic music because I felt that that was the only way I could get my musical ideas out to the world. I think that is why my music doesn’t sound like your typical electronic music. It’s electronically based for sure, with synths all over the place, but my singing and rapping combination I feel make it unique. And if I list my top 50 artists of all time, for example, only a handful of them would be electronic artists. Most would be bands.
What are your plans for the future (musically)?
I plan to release another single in August before (like I said above) releasing my full 12 song album Post Neo Emo Hop in September. Go to my YouTube channel where you can find my album announcement video for a preview of all 12 songs! And finally, I do have a show at a venue called Your Mom’s House here in Denver on Friday, September 22nd. It is a celebration of my new album but I plan to release the album a little before then, so people have a chance to listen before they hear some of the songs live.
Is there anything else you would like to say?
Thanks so much for the opportunity! Appreciate the exposure!