Occasional Albums Thing 004 - Damien Dempsey “Hold Your Joy”

The release of a new Damien Dempsey record or announcement of a tour is always cause for much excitement in our house. A completely new Damien Dempsey record has been a long time coming. The disappointing “Soulsun” was released in 2017, 7 years ago ! And his last truly great album, “Almighty Love”, was 5 years before that! So it’s been 12 years since I was suitably blown away by a Damo album…no pressure then mucker.

“Hold Your Joy” arrives on double orange vinyl and all the usual crew are back to make it with him, drummer/producer John Reynolds, Whistle/Flautist Eamonn de Barra and bassist Clare Kenny. And there I think may be a part of the problem, Damo mate, you really do need to go and make a record with someone else because this is all beginning to sound a little familiar and I gotta say, stale. I was talking with Miles about it and the thing you are taken with at a Damo show is his presence, he’s in your face, abusing his guitar with that boxers right arm, fierce, “a warrior coming down the mountain at ya” as he himself wrote. The last time we saw him the band came out and started playing the first song, after a minute or so out wanders Damo beating his chest, raising his fist in triumph, roaring at the crowd who are right with him. That’s the Damien Dempsey album someone should be capturing, the one I want to hear after 12 years, not this…

I’ve had “Hold Your Joy” on repeat for a week now and there is honestly nothing sticking with me, I’m struggling to find anything truly memorable here. All the familiar themes are represented, joy, hope, love, the sun, the evils of drugs and politicians but it all feels like a checklist of stuff you have to fit in rather than lyrics written with real conviction. There is the song about an Irish rebel but of all the subjects you have to pick from you choose to write a song about Wrexham’s left wing-back…really ! “Hope Calling” is a nice pop song I guess but “Love Is The Bomb” is the closest this album gets to sparking into life, sadly it’s the very last track on Side 4 of an album that runs for over an hour by which time it’s a little too late.

I genuinely love Damien Dempsey, not just his music, I’m lucky enough to count him as a friend but I feel like, over his last 3 albums, he’s being ill served by the people who are looking after his interests. As I said earlier, he really needs to get out and write and record with some new people. His previous 8 albums plus this one were made with the same core musicians/production team and it really feels like it’s time to move on, you only have to listen to Paul Weller’s diminishing returns over the last 7 albums to see where doing the same thing over and over gets you. I’ll still go see Damo live, it’s a life affirming, soul cleansing experience every feckin’ time but, just like “Soulsun” before it, I don’t think I’ll be reaching for this one too often in the future.

Love Is The Bomb - https://youtu.be/6gXiYIFKgqw?si=ByKZbtcPX6Jp9zna