Smidley, the project of Conor Murphy, recently announced his new album Murphy Horse, will arrive on September 25th via Royal Mountain Records, Ahead of the LP’s arrival, Smidley has shared lead single “Capstone,” which features vocals from Lucy Dacus. Smidley’s music is the product of unfinished or unexplored music with his previous band Foxing. Through Murphy’s own growth in and out of Smidley, though, art and life itself have entered into an ongoing cycle of redefinition. This redefinition isn’t a destination, but a new pathway paved by his gratitude for and security in the artist, husband, and man that he’s become. “These songs summarize a year of confusion and doubt where the only thing I was actually sure of is that I married the love of my life,” Murphy explains. “Those two ideas were the basis for every song here.”

Murphy openly says, “the way I write songs…Smidley is either a reaction to Foxing or something I learned from it.” As Foxing hunched under the emotional ceiling they’d hit, Smidley became more and more of an outlet for Murphy and Foxing bassist Brett Torrence, now on guitar, and would soon be rounded out with bassist Mitch Renfrew and drummer Jack Middeke.

For Murphy Horse, Murphy worked with Joe Reinhart (Dr. Dog, Joyce Manor, Beach Bunny) and Ryan Schwabe (BNYX, Algernon Cadwallader, Tobi Lou) for Murphy Horse’s mixing and mastering respectively. Outside of engineering, Smidley also includes a number of other guest musicians for appearances throughout the work, including previously mentioned Lucy Dacus (boygenius), Adam Schatz (Japanese Breakfast), and Brooks Tipton (Manchester Orchestra).

Next month, Smidley will tour with Lucy Dacus, as well as playing a handful of headlining dates, including an album release show at Off Broadway in St. Louis on Sept. 19th. In October, they’ll support Ratboys throughout the south and midwest.

Smidley
Murphy Horse
Tracklist
Royal Mountain Records

1. Corpse Flower Feat. Shinra Knives
2. Capstone Feat. Lucy Dacus
3. Murphy Horse
4. Love In Every Direction
5. Today Was A Wash
6. Friendly’s
7. People Like You
8. Robin Egg
9. Nearer To You
10. Old Things Never Die

Smidley 2026 Tour Dates

Sun. July 12 – Madison, WI @ The Sylvee *
Mon. July 13 – Grand Rapids, MI @ Meijer Gardens *
Wed. July 15 – Toronto, ON @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre *
Fri. July 17 – Chicago, IL @ Downstairs at Subterranean
Sun. July 19 – Detroit, MI @ Lager House
Mon. July 20 – Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theatre and Ballroom *
Wed. July 22 – Kingston, NY @ Ulster Performing Arts Center * – SOLD OUT
Thu. July 23 – North Adams, MA @ Mass MoCA *
Sat. July 25 – Asbury Park, NY @ Stone Pony Summer Stage *
Sat. Sept. 19 – St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway – RECORD RELEASE SHOW
Wed. Oct. 14 – Lexington, KY @ The Burl ^
Thu. Oct. 15 – Champaign, IL @ City Center ^
Fri. Oct. 16 – Columbia, MO @ Blue Note ^
Sun. Oct. 18 – Birmingham, AL @ Lakeview Marina ^
Tue. Oct. 20 – Athens, GA @ 40 Watt ^
Wed. Oct. 21 – Charlotte, NC @ Visulite Theatre ^
Thu. Oct. 22 – Chattanooga, TN @ The Parlour at The Signal ^

*w/ Lucy Dacus
^w/ Ratboy

pre-order Murphy Horse by Smidley HERE