Dubliner hitting the right notes

BY JOANNE CORCORAN

Damien Dempsey at Lisdoonvarna

Irish singer/songwriter Damien Dempsey is not new on the music scene. A few years ago, the 27-year-old from Dublin's northside had a hit with Dublin Town, which featured on his debut album, They don't teach this shit in school. Since then, he has become one of the best emerging songwriters in the country. People have been calling him 'the new Christy Moore', primarily because of his passionate and socially and politically aware lyrics, and Moore himself has been keen to promote Dempsey's talent.

His music and his powerful live performances, showcasing a passion so rare in today's world of boybands and pop idols, are the secret to his success.

His second album, Seize the Day, which came out this year, testifies to his growing popularity. Artists such as Sinéad O'Connor and Kieron Kielly jumped at the chance to collaborate on the album with the young Dubliner.

International artists have also begun to take an interest in his music. Last year, the hugely successful 'Massive Attack' recorded one of his songs.

Republicans may most recently recall his performance on TV3's The Dunphy Show the night Gerry Adams was a guest.

While Adams talked about the Hunger Strikers and the H-Blocks, Dempsey sang his song Colony - "You came from Germany, from France, from England and from Spain/From Belgium and from Portugal/You all done much the same/You took what was not yours.../But did you ever apologise/For the hundreds and millions of lives/ You destroyed and terrorised?" providing the perfect anti-colonial backdrop to the Sinn Féin president's interview.

I first saw him perform live at the Lisdoonvarna gig this year, held, bizarrely, in the RDS in Dublin Sometimes you hear a performance that physically stuns you — you know that it is absolutely of the moment, completely raw and passionate. That was how Dempsey was on stage. In fact, it was generally accepted that his was the best gig of the day.

Last week, he took time out of his increasingly busy schedule to give An Phoblacht an interview. I found him surprisingly down-to-earth. In fact, I get the impression that, no matter how famous he gets, he'll never forget his roots.

JC: Damien, what got you interested in music? When did you decide that music was going to be your career?

DD: I have to say Whiskey in the Jar. Phil Lynnot had just died (1986), and I remember my older brother calling me into the sitting room, and he had Whiskey in the Jar blaring out of the stereo. I though it sounded brilliant, it was just amazing. After that I got a guitar. I wasn't long learning how to play it; it's like anything you love, you just keep at it. I'd practice for a couple of hours every night. I just loved music and everything to do with it.

A lot of your song lyrics, like those in 'Factories and' 'Chillin', seem to get their inspiration from the community you come from. Do you see that changing the more successful you become?

I'm still living where I always lived and that's what I write about. How I see things, what's going on in Dublin, around the country, around the world. But I suppose the lyrics will change the older I get. Or when I move into that big mansion on Howth Head! Ah, no, I'm joking. I think I'll always draw on my background. But I'll probably eventually start writing more international lyrics. I want to get more people to listen to the songs, so I can't be afraid to change how I write. I want to eventually have a broader audience.

Many musicians say it takes them a few albums to find their true sound, the voice that is uniquely theirs. Do you think you're at that point yet?

I think the voice I have now is the one I'll always have. Yeah, in the early days my sound was thicker — probably due to my accent and stuff. But I found that I'd be down the country doing gigs, and people couldn't understand what I was singing. You don't want to be working on lyrics for three months and then not have people understand what you're singing. So I listened to Luke Kelly, and how he pronounced all his words, and I started putting more emphasis on how I was singing. I like the sound I have now.

Dublin seems to produce a lot of musical talent, but as you know it's hard to get the break you're looking for. What advice would you give to young bands and singers who are trying to make it?

I suppose I'd tell young bands to try and get their own distinct sound and not to be afraid to use their backgrounds in writing and performing.

So you don't buy in to that whole manufactured Pop Idol sound?

I don't watch Pop Idol. I don't know, I suppose there are people out there who want to be pop idols, and best of luck to them. But it doesn't appeal to me.

Do you believe in the power of music as a tool to bring about social change?

I think people like Christy Moore and Bob Marley definitely changed things. They told people to stand up and know their rights. They made their audiences socially aware. And they can persuade people who listen to them to make a contribution, even something small like giving some money to charity or whatever.

Or look at Bono, he got Bush to commit to dealing with AIDs in Africa. Or Bob Geldof organising Live Aid. They used their fame to do something worthwhile for society.

I like to think that if I had that sort of fame I'd do something useful with it as well.

Do you believe in having heroes? Do you have any yourself?

I definitely believe in heroes, I have loads of musical heroes — Jimmy Hendrix, Phil Lynnot, Bob Marley, Elvis. I think they were the best at what they did, and deserve to be admired.

Do you have any non-musical heroes?

Bobby Sands, because he gave his life for what he believed in.

You're known for writing powerful lyrics, but in a recent interview you said you wrote the music first and struggled with the lyrics. Can you elaborate on that?

Yeah, I have to write about 20 songs before I get one good one. Other people seem to be able to write loads of good songs off the top of their heads, but for me the melody comes no problem, then I struggle with the words. I reckon if you come up with a good tune, there's no point wasting it by putting crap lyrics on it, so I try and try again until I'm happy with what I have. I know what I want to say, but it can be hard to say it well. It's like any sort of writing, I suppose. It takes a while before what you have is perfect.

Do you have a measure of how successful you'd like to be?

I just want to make a bit of money out of what I'm doing, to be able to get a place of my own and that. Obviously it would be nice to get famous in America or whatever. But I'm not looking for much out of it. I love what I do, so I think I'm very lucky. As long as I get to write songs and perform them, I'll be happy.

• Damien Dempsey will be performing at Vicar Street, Dublin, on New Year's Eve.