There’s a certain shimmer to Beauty Sleep. Since emerging from Belfast’s DIY scene with a sound that swims somewhere between dream-pop, synth-laced indie and hook-heavy alt-rock, the duoo have carved out a niche that feels effortlessly warm, quietly subversive and unmistakably their own. Whether on record or in a packed-out room, they deal in textures – woozy, widescreen and always tinged with emotional clarity.

Ahead of their highly anticipated second album, The Whole Damn Cake, Cheylene Murphy and Ryan McGroarty return with a new single that captures the band at their most self-assured and sonically expansive to date. In this conversation for Music Connections, the duo delve into the making of the record, the themes and textures driving their latest work, and how Belfast continues to shape their sound. It’s a portrait of a band embracing change while staying true to the glow at their core.

 

Hi guys, big congrats on the release of ‘Radical Happiness’. It feels like a real crystallisation of the message you’ve been flying the flag for since day one. Where does that commitment to fun and joy stem from, and why has it remained so central to what you do?

Thank you! This one does feel like the Beauty Sleep manifesto! And it’s not by accident that a lot of our music preaches joy and self-love. Writing and releasing music is a huge part of us understanding ourselves and building our lives. We are always manifesting the confidence, joy, and freedom we desire through our music – if you write it, if you release it, it becomes real, even if it’s just for 2 minutes 40 seconds. This upcoming album is much more deliberate on that journey though. I think if you read between the lines of our music you can tell that we struggle mentally, we struggle in this world to feel normal, and we wanted to finally claim ‘Radical Happiness’ for ourselves, and write about that journey.

Music has always been such a great lifeline and escape for us our entire lives, so when we make music we are motivated to create something that can be an escape for other people – where someone we’ve never met can feel seen, or find some joy, euphoria and empowerment for a brief moment in time, because that’s what music is to us. We are naturally drawn to be antithetical to the gloom, doom and suffering, the shame and guilt we see in society, so in a way it’s unconscious – this is just who we are and why we make music.

Sonically, it’s one of your boldest, most technicolour moments yet – a prismatic hit of indie-pop (or, as you’ve beautifully dubbed it, intergalactic art-pop). Was there a moment in the studio or writing process when you knew this one was going to be special?

This song was developed in waves over years. The title of this song was the first thing we wrote for this album and it of course sparked a movement in our personal lives. When we wrote the instrumentals, we joked it should sound like the theme tune of the album, so the first section started off tongue in cheek almost as a jingle. That major-minor chord flip in the bridge that lands in a key change for the end section really excited us, and that was the basis of the song we built upon. The chorus never landed, was rewritten many times, and only settled maybe 6 months ago. We only finished the production in February this year.

At every stage we just tried to turn up the radical happiness, and what that sentiment meant to us morphed, changed, and deepened as we went on our own journey. It’s a real mesh of our best efforts over years – it’s grown as we have too. That’s why we think the song is so special, because it’s been on the journey with us!

We’d be remiss not to touch on the video. It’s a pure rush; visually striking, full of joy and very you. What was the experience of making it like? Did it feel like an extension of the song’s ethos?

Thank you! The song is ambitious, so we knew the music video needed to match. We wanted it to feel like a movement that you could join because that’s what ‘Radical Happiness’ has been to us. Making this song and this album has changed our lives. So we put together a plan which included a LOT of people, reached out to our fans and friends, and luckily everyone said yes and really showed up in every way on the day!

We were very stressed before shoot day because of all the moving parts – there’s just more room for things to go wrong – and because it was for THIS song, which has been such a long dream and journey for us, we were naturally emotional. Also, we shot it literally 7 days before it was due to be released (we love a deadline!) so Cheylene pulled a blinder editing it in 3 days… it was a bit of a hectic plan.

But the shoot day was the most fun we’ve ever had making a music video. Everyone was full of energy, chipping in with ideas, faces sore from laughing all day! We were so in awe of everyone who turned up and we LOVE the end result. It does feel like an extension of the song’s ethos – more than we could have imagined. Big shout out to Neil Hainsworth, our cinematographer, and Ellen Blair, our creative assist – we couldn’t have done this without them!

 

Massive congrats as well on signing to Alcopop! That must feel like a real milestone. What drew you to the label, and how does it feel knowing The Whole Damn Cake will be released under their banner?

We’ve always admired the label and their signings, and when we worked with them for our Problem Patterns remix last year, we just had such a great time with everyone on that team. They all have a fearless energy which is a little intoxicating. So when Jack was over in Belfast for Output Festival, we kidnapped him and brought him to our studio where we played the mixes and shared some beers. From a face-to-face chat about motivations, music and ideas, we knew it would be a great collaboration.

Jack is a real encourager. Many labels might try to turn down our most ridiculous ideas or steer us to more traditional or safe decisions, but immediately and consistently Alcopop! has only championed us to go further at every turn, which just appeals to our maximalist ideologies! We are trying to create a place of freedom and empowerment with Beauty Sleep – we aim for our music to make you feel like you can do anything. Our ethos aligns, and the serendipity of it all felt kismet… we’re so happy The Whole Damn Cake has found a home with them.

You’ve described ‘Radical Happiness’ as the “theme song” of the album. Can you talk us through that a bit – how it frames the rest of the record and what it represents thematically?

This album is about the journey of us finding radical happiness for ourselves over the past 4 years, and it was a difficult journey. It started with Cheylene painting the words ‘Radical Happiness’ on a canvas, and we decided we would go on that journey and write songs along the way.

I think people would think we are naturally really happy, positive people, but that was not the case. We really struggled and our lives were not set up for us to succeed – we just relied on pushing ourselves too hard to burnout and not feeling sure enough of our direction or worth.
Facing your demons, embracing yourself, fighting for your voice, for freedom and ownership over your identity and expression is hard. Change is scary, full of insecurities. The first step is fearless and exciting, and when you reach your goal you are elated and calm, but all the in-between parts are chaos, disorienting, and full of uncertainty. Being out of your comfort zone is uncomfortable, even if it is the intention.

This album is full of all the steps of the in-between on that journey, but ‘Radical Happiness’ represents that fearlessness of taking a brave step in a new direction, and the celebration and confidence that comes with facing difficult things together. It represents the start and end of the journey – as again, it was the first thing we started and the last we finished – so it frames the whole album.

It’s wild to think it’s been six years since Be Kind. Looking back, how would you say your songwriting, sound or outlook has evolved since then? What feels different about The Whole Damn Cake?

Every. Single. Fucking. Thing!

In a nutshell: we were as brave as we could have been with Be Kind, but we knew we needed to do a lot of work to be the artists we wanted to be. We feel we were hiding behind vibes, mystery and cool. There is so much vagueness and yearning in the lyrics that it was clear we didn’t know what we wanted either – “I know there’s something out there” – what? It was so unspecific.
We view Beauty Sleep as a multi-disciplinary life-art project. Releasing Be Kind highlighted the need to do some internal work to get to the next step.

Skill side: every single area – from singing, instrument playing, production, mixing, songwriting, visuals – has had such attention and growth, and we think you can tell. Life-wise, we have figured out how to have a routine and live a life where we can be somewhat sustainable towards our goals and also ENJOY ourselves. We understand our emotions and ourselves more. We have experienced life more.

All these things make this album better. We keep jokingly (kind of not jokingly) saying: to write this album we just had to move in together, get married, go to therapy, go to festivals, take holidays, learn how to cook, go to the gym, build a studio, cry a lot, dance a lot and you know, write some songs.

With the first album, we tried to do the impossible with limited time, equipment and support. With this album, we have started by taking care of ourselves and making sure we are happy, taking responsibility for the skills and the output and respecting the process and the art-making, and it’s the best thing either of us has ever made. We just can’t wait to keep making more music!

This series is as much about mindset as music, and you two have long walked the walk. From mental health advocacy to pushing for equality, your voice has always been present – way back to Wonder Villains even. What continues to drive that sense of responsibility?

That’s kind of you to say! We believe in music. We believe in art as a tool to transform, because it’s been that for us. We can’t describe to you how much music has changed our lives for the better – we understand ourselves and the world more through music. Music has helped us process the worst emotions and facilitated the best memories of our lives. We truly believe art can change the world – it is powerful.

We are motivated to be a part of the counterculture – we believe in the power of that. We want to make music that makes people feel free, seen and empowered because then they can do anything. Creative solidarity, freedom and empowerment, joy and pleasure – these are what inspire and drive us.

We are seen as very positive and very pop, but we are naturally disruptors – we think we’re a punk rock band, just with synthesizers and glitter! Doing it with colour and fun is just the most authentic way for us to create, disrupt and fight back. Silliness and fun have been revolutionary places for us, so we like to lead with that in what we do – and that’s also why we advocate and push for equality. Because people have the right to live their life on their own terms, and society should support them in doing that – it shouldn’t be so difficult just to survive. We couldn’t have written this album if we hadn’t fought for that freedom and support for ourselves first. But it shouldn’t be on the individual – the system should support people better, and we hope our brand of positive disruption inspires and empowers collective change.

On that note, how do you both take care of your own heads these days? Navigating the pressures of life and music can be a lot. What helps you stay grounded, creative and radically happy?

Community! We have the best of friends – we are so lucky. We couldn’t do anything without the likes of Katie Richardson, Problem Patterns, Tutti Music Club, Vault Artists Community… They are just a handful of names and honestly we could spend all day gushing over how amazing and inspiring our friends and the creative community we’re in are.

Spending time with them, leaning on them when we are lost or struggling – they lift us up, inspire us, and we are so grateful and emotional thinking of them!

And also… experiencing live music, going dancing as much as possible, cycling in and out of our studio, exercising and cooking together, listening to tunes, a humble walk and a pint shared with a friend – these everyday things bring us such joy, and we are always on the lookout for joy!

 

Solidarity and community seem to underpin so much of what you do. Whether that’s through collaboration or support for fellow artists here in NI, it feels like a core part of your journey. How has that shaped the band’s identity?

We love how much art can morph whenever you collaborate or whenever you see it reflected back to you… in a friendship group loving a song, or someone making out in the crowd of your gig… that is the coolest thing!

Releasing music, our fans and creative peers have taught us more about ourselves than any therapist. This genuinely is a collaborative project. We never really know where our music will land and we are incredibly informed by how people receive what we make – always excited by how the music changes when people start to engage with it.

For example, releasing ‘BIG + BAD’ last year completely changed our view of what we were making with this album for the better. Suddenly we realised our fans and us – we’re the BIG + BAD ones – and that hadn’t really clicked until we saw people sing it back to us. We listen, we adapt, and the communities and artists around us inspire and excite us more than anything. Art is a conversation after all.

You’re rightly seen as a vital force in the scene – steadfast, evolving and deeply respected. What’s the fire that still fuels you to carve your own space?

The deep belief that it should be better in the music industry, but especially the NI music industry, and that more diverse voices should be supported and championed. Our ultimate goal is to really make it and open the doors up for all the other queer silly weirdos to come through with us – then the counterculture becomes the culture, then we’re all so much happier. So, world domination fuels us I guess!

If you had to sum up what The Whole Damn Cake stands for in a single sentence, what would it be? Is it a statement, a celebration, a manifesto, or something else entirely?

The title is a good sum-up of the album. The full sentence that was said trying to come up with the album title was, “I’m not too much, I’m The Whole Damn Cake.” That was the statement that summed up how we felt after all the exploration, therapy, learning, living, experiencing all we did to make this album.
The Whole Damn Cake is about embracing and celebrating all the parts of ourselves we made smaller over the years, to fit into society’s mold that we just really never fit into, and fighting for and taking care of that voice that we just kept pushing down.

Finally, what advice would you offer to newer artists who want to build something joyful, meaningful and true to themselves in an often chaotic industry?

Find your friends – go to gigs, listen to music, meet people. Then support your friends, let your friends support you. You’ll find more inspiration and wisdom in fellow artists with the same ethos than anyone in “the industry” side of things.

And take your time. The industry makes you feel constantly like you’ve missed your shot. Fuck that. They’re lying. There’s time. Good art lasts forever and good art takes time. Also – have fun! Because at the end of the day, music should be FUN!!