Chelsea Murphy is the talented vocalist of Dawn of Ouroboros, a Progressive Death Metal band known for blending diverse musical influences into a cohesive sound. In this interview, she reflects on the growth behind their latest album Bioluminescence, her musical background, and the challenges women face in the heavy music scene.

Reuel

Hello Chelsea! I am happy to chat with you. How are you doing?

Chelsea Murphy

I’m doing well thanks, summer is always an exceptionally busy time in most areas of life, music being one of them.

Reuel

Congratulations on releasing your new album, Bioluminescence, back in March. How are you feeling about the way it was received by your fans?

Chelsea Murphy

Thank you. Bioluminescence feels like an album that really kicked down some doors for Dawn of Ouroboros. This album feels the most cohesive of all the albums we’ve created. We’re feeling like we’ve hit our groove and ready to take more swings at music, tours, etc. We are elated to have received such positive feedback on this album from fans, reviewers and musicians alike.

Reuel

I read through some of the comments on Bandcamp, and many fans were impressed by how you fuse elements from different genres into your music. How do you manage to blend so many diverse influences in a way that feels natural and cohesive, rather than overwhelming or chaotic?

Chelsea Murphy

Honestly, we just do what we want, what feels right and never force the art to fit a preconceived idea. I think it’s important to keep an open mind while writing, it allows for things to take the shape they’re supposed to.

Reuel

Bioluminescence is your third album in five years. Looking back at your earlier releases, what do you feel has changed the most in your music, your experience, and the way you see things now?

Chelsea Murphy

Album 1 felt like I was writing within the memory of a dream, explorative, new, self discovery but blurry, the vision was not clear but rather an amalgamation of many ideas coming together. Sometimes things you would not expect to make sense in reality and listening back, played a vital role in our development. We genuinely had no idea what would happen after we released it, if anything at all.
Album 2 felt a little more contained, but still uncertain of where we were and where we were going next. The colors and clarity of our dream were still being developed, like film that’s almost developed to show the brilliance of the photo captured but not quite there.
Album 3 felt whole, cohesive, like every vision was clear and we walked the twists and turns of the path we laid out before us with a newfound belonging. Honestly, it felt right and brought an excitement to my heart that I hadn’t felt before. Despite the album having a lot of variety and requiring a present listen from the listener for most of it, it felt like the dream had become clear. The photo had fully developed. That photo/dream is comprised of increased comfort amongst ourselves and as a band, expanded skillsets, determination and letting go just enough that our color could finally blend to create the picture we desired, the one that lived within us.

Reuel

WOW! Such a journey! Which track from Bioluminescence do you enjoy performing live on stage the most? And which track is getting the best reaction when performed live?

Chelsea Murphy

I would say for me personally, it’s a tie between Slipping Burgundy and Nebulae. Both these tracks are bold, yield crowd awe and allow me an opportunity to shine as a vocalist performing some of my favorite works to date. The crowd seems to love both of these tracks but Slipping Burgundy and Dueling Sunsets are seemingly the crowd favorites while we are performing.

Reuel

Can you tell us a little about your musical background? What musicians had the most influence on you growing up and inspired you to become an artist yourself?

Chelsea Murphy

If you asked me what I wanted to do professionally when I was 3 years old, I would have told you I wanted to be a singer. Singing always brought me great joy and over the years, the songs I sang went from classics from Carole King, Roberta Flack, Etta James expanding into extreme metal in my teenage years. I listened to anything and everything I could get my hands on growing up, which luckily my Dad had an expansive library of CDs he’d collected over the years that offered music from Polish circus music to Metallica, Diana Krall, Creed, Counting Crows, Pink Floyd, and beyond. I feel having access to such an expansive library of music from birth allowed me the exploration and appreciation of music I needed to become a more versatile artist.

Reuel

How do you feel about the representation of women in heavy music today, and what do you think can be done to promote more inclusivity and support for female musicians?

Chelsea Murphy

I think women in heavy metal are often oversexualized and put in a box to be honest. I think this is true with most art, unfortunately. Being that metal is heavily male-dominated, women have to work harder to feel as if they have a space to be within the art. I think people can make it more inclusive by not putting so much emphasis on the gender of musicians but rather their skill, dedication to their craft and work ethic.

Reuel

Thank you for your time, Chelsea, and for this interview! Is there anything else you’d like to conclude this interview with?

Chelsea Murphy

Thank you for your time and energy. I really appreciate the opportunity to speak with you and share my art, history, and dreams with you and your audience. I just want to thank all the people who continue to support us. We wouldn’t be climbing if we didn’t have such a wonderful fan base that supports us by showing up to our tour dates, investing in our merch, sharing our music, and reminding us to keep fighting/creating out art. We will be on the road again August 27th-September 8th with Anciients, Exist (some dates), and more. Super excited to get back out there again and looking forward to more opportunities to hit the road in the future. Come see us if we play a city near you!