Gavin Murphy’s debut album Moment, released on May 30, 2025, is a tranquil cinematic escape that feels more like a visual experience than just music. An ambient and instrumental collection, it is rooted in the Irish countryside and decades of musical mastery. For someone who’s spent over twenty years arranging and producing for musical heavyweights like Van Morrison and Niall Horan, Murphy has finally stepped into his own spotlight and it glows softly.
“Mother’s Theme” opens the album with hushed reverence, where a tiptoeing piano ascends gently while glimmering high notes sparkle like rainfall on glass. Subtle but emotive strings form a writhing undercurrent, hinting at cinematic tension. It’s delicate and intimate, like the quiet before a memory surfaces. The title track, “Moment,” arrives like a deep exhale. A warm, gliding piano melody soothes instantly, joined by barely-there string swells that wrap around you like a soft blanket.
By the time you reach “Petite Waltz,” you feel fully immersed in Murphy’s world. It’s airy and feather-light, with shimmering piano above a grounded, mellow bass line. When the horns enter, it’s like the arrival of golden-hour sunlight, moody, rich, and oddly comforting. The song swells towards its close, the strings thickening the emotion until you’re left with something quietly profound.
Moment is a culmination of Murphy’s life in music. With nods to Vangelis, The Beatles, and Ellington, Murphy crafts a soundscape that’s part memory, part dream, and wholly serene.
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Review by: Naomi Joan