John Murry and Oh Petroleum on Music, Art, and Trauma

Artribune publishes interviews with musicians John Murry and Oh Petroleum (Maurizio Vierucci) as part of its 'Walk of Muses' series. John Murry, born in Tupelo (1979) and adopted into William Faulkner's family, discusses his near-fatal overdose, his acclaimed debut album (2012) praised by Uncut and The Guardian, and his new album produced by John Parish (known for work with PJ Harvey). He names Artemisia Gentileschi's two paintings of Judith beheading Holofernes (1613 at Museo Nazionale di Capodimonte, Naples; 1620 at Uffizi, Florence) as his favorite visual artworks, citing a personal connection to the artist's trauma. Oh Petroleum, Italian songwriter Maurizio Vierucci, started as a drummer and moved to ambient sounds using cassette multitrack recorders. He has collaborated with visual artists, dancers, and writers, released three albums since 2011, and opened for Timber Timbre and Robyn Hitchcock. His influences include Robert Ashley, Steve Reich, David Bowie, and Jeffrey Lee Pierce. He cites Graciela Iturbide's photograph 'Carnaval Tlaxcala' as inspiring his new record. Both artists share definitions of art and music, with Murry calling art 'a revolutionary act' and Vierucci defining it as 'displacement and change.' The interviews were conducted by Samantha Stella.