Damien Dempsey: Spiritual calling

Damien Dempsey says being onstage alone has its advantages.

Music is a religion for Irish singer-songwriter Damien Dempsey and he's here to spread the word, reports Shane Gilchrist.

He might have some big-name fans, including Bob Dylan and U2 (both of whom he has shared a bill with), yet Irish singer-songwriter Damien Dempsey is not about to let success alter his world view.

Having moved from sing-alongs in pubs in north Dublin to various stadiums around the world, Dempsey, 38, is now one of the biggest names in Irish music.

Dylan and U2 aside, others who have professed a liking for him are Brian Eno, Sinead O'Connor and Morrissey, who invited Dempsey to support him on a US tour.

However, the award-winning artist is swapping the big-concert spotlights for the ambience and intimacy of smaller venues on a tour of Australia and New Zealand. Talking from Perth, Dempsey is buzzing about visiting New Zealand. There is another reason he sounds upbeat: Ireland's win in the Six Nations rugby championship, which gave retiring captain Brian O'Driscoll the perfect send-off.

"It was great to see him go out on a high," Dempsey says, his strong Dublin accent requiring strict concentration ("high" comes out as "hoy").

The manner of Dempsey's patter is only raised in the context of his career: having won several prestigious Irish Meteor Awards, including Best Irish Male and Best Traditional Folk Award, his success is built on remaining true to his roots.

In short, there is no affectation and certainly no attempt to adopt any transatlantic vocal stylings.

"I'm not into music for fame or money," he says.

"I would rob banks to pay to go on tour. I love it. I feel very lucky to travel all around the world playing music, even if it's just to 10 or 20 people. This is my religion.

"I think it is important for everyone to sing. I hate hearing somebody telling someone that they can't sing. Everyone should sing; it helps you through life. I think it is a spiritual thing."

Following in the footsteps of The Dubliners and The Pogues, adding elements of reggae, rock and Celtic rap to traditional Irish folk music, Dempsey first emerged in 2000 with debut album They Don't Teach This Shit in School. It showed his songwriting has more to do with barbs than babes.

"I've never been into writing soppy love songs," he says.

"When I feel angry about something, if someone has been done wrong, I've always had to write a song about it. It's an itch I have to scratch. Talking about things, discussion, is good.

"When I'm in a conversation, I listen more than I talk. A fella who came before me, [Irish folk music legend] Christy Moore, just took in what was going on and put it to song.

"I'm a disciple of his. You watch everything and take knowledge from everyone."

And despite suffering from chronic shyness, he says going it alone on stage - rather than having a band for company - has its advantages. "And when you are playing solo, you can dwell on the lyrics a bit more. At a show with a band, where lots of people are standing and talking, you can't really tell a story.

"It gets lost. The people want to jump around ... but at a solo show people can concentrate more on the lyrics."

Who: Damien Dempsey
Where and when: Jax Munster Inn, Wellesley St, Auckland, Saturday March 29

- TimeOut / Otago Daily Times