Recorded between 2015 and 2017.

The making of Murdocks – III was a true labor of love. For all practical purposes, we had broken up after all the work and buildup that went into Distortionist kinda just fell flat. We were exhausted. Playing these songs takes a lot of time rehearsing to build up the stamina to carry through an intense 14 or 15 song set of Murdocks songs. We spent a lot of time in the room working and a lot of time on stage. We were the tightest we’d ever been, and shows were a lot of fun, but by early 2011 we were pretty burned out. We played less and less. By 2013, we had pretty much just stopped getting together for rehearsal. Franklin moved to San Antonio to pursue work opportunities, while Kyle and Dave stayed busy playing in other bands around town. We never stopped being really tight friends, though.

Along the way, Kyle officiated Franklin’s wedding. Dave Married Franklin’s sister. Kyle officiated Dave’s wedding. Kyle had a kid. Franklin had a kid, Kyle moved back to Seattle. Franklin moved to San Francisco, and now (temporarily), Texas. A lot has happened and we all grew up. A little.

Somewhere along the way, this record happened. Franklin had hinted that he was going crazy in San Antonio not playing in a band and had like 30 sketches of songs that he had worked up on acoustic guitar. He sent them to Dave and Kyle with the warning that these were a lot mellower. More mature. On recording, they were.

In 2015 we decided to get together and play around with some of Franklin’s songs. Because of the logistical challenges of Franklin being in San Antonio, we could really only get together for a couple hours on a weekend, here or there. Sometimes we’d see each other a couple times a month, sometimes it would be a couple months in between. We tackled these songs maybe 3 or 4 at a time, sometimes only really getting to work on one song each time we connected. It was a lot of work. The songs were really just fragments, but we built them into songs, the same way we’ve always worked together. The songs took on a life of their own and almost wrote themselves. In typical Murdocks fashion, they got heavier. A lot heavier. And faster.

Knowing we had a bunch of great songs in Franklin’s back pocket, we decided to record the first four and just see how things went. Kyle knew Chico Jones from a few past recording sessions and had a great respect for his work methods and his ability to get massive sounds. After we all met and Chico mentioned Drive like Jehu, it seemed like a real solid fit. Over the next couple years, we scraped together enough time to write the rest of the record and record two more batches of songs. Our third LP had finally come together.

Just a quick note about Chico, though. He absolutely CRUSHED this record. The one thing we cared about more than anything was capturing the energy and intensity of what it sounds like at a show. He did all that and more; this record is HUGE. He coached us, shaped our sound, and he put his whole heart into making this record feel alive. Chico created the kind of environment where a record like this can be made. The rhythm tracks on this record are all live-tracked and were generally captured on the second or third take. That doesn’t happen unless everything feels just right. And wow, this record sounds good.

Now, arriving nearly 10 years after our last release, Distortionist, this is a record we’re all intensely proud to have made. We’re releasing this digitally. It’ll be on whatever streaming platform you frequent. We might consider a small vinyl release if there’s enough interest, but mostly we just want you to listen to it. Loud. Share it with your friends, add it to playlists, make it part of your musical life. Enjoy it. We enjoyed making it.

Murdocks // Franklin, David, Kyle