Damien Dempsey, one of Irelands most talented and recognised artists with 4 successful albums behind him and numerous awards from the music industry plays at The Backroom in McGrorys once again.

The Backroom, not only a fantastic venue for performing artists, but is an initmate and atmospheric venue for people to enjoy such talents as Damien Dempsey performing tracks from his every growing list of successful release such as ‘Dublin Town’, ‘To Hell or Barbados’ and a ‘Rainy Night In Soho’ amongst others.

Damien Dempsey released his 4th studio album ‘To Hell Or Barbados’ on June 1st 2007.

Damien began his musical career in the Ballyfermot ‘Rock School’ where he studied both musical performance and the practical side of the music business. The school had its own small record label where exceptional students were given an opportunity to release on the label. In 1995 Damien was chosen for this honour and released his first EP, ‘The Contender’.

In 1997 “Dublin Town”, Damien’s first commercial single, reached No. 18 in the Irish charts. Ireland’s HOT PRESS remarked that it was “..an underground anthem for disaffected youth and closet balladeer alike”. His next release, the “Negative Vibes EP”, (2002) featured Sinéad O’Connor on the title track and led to an invitation to support Sinéad on her 2002/2003 Irish, UK and European tour.

Damien’s second album, “Seize the Day”, was released May 2003 in Ireland and entered the charts first week of release at No. 5. It has since achieved double-platinum sales. Released in May 2004 in the UK on IRL, the album was awarded “CD of the Week” in the Sunday Times and received enthusiastic reviews in the National and music press.

Nominated in 4 categories in the 2004 Irish Meteor Awards, Damien walked away with two awards, the only 2004 double winner.

A documentary, “It’s All Good: The Damien Dempsey Story” by independent filmmaker Dara McCluskey, followed Damien’s career progression up to the release of “Seize the Day” and was broadcast on RTE and shown at film festivals in both Ireland and New York.
His third album, “Shots”, simultaneously released in Ireland and the UK in March 2005, entered the Irish album charts at Number 1 and achieved platinum status in December 2005. The album was also released in the U.S. on United for Opportunity Records in June 2006 and Damien undertook a coast to coast tour. ‘Shots’ yielded some great radio hits for Damien ‘ including ‘Patience’ ‘Hold Me’ ‘St. Patrick’s Day’ and ‘Sing All Our Cares Away’.

In February 2006 Damien won another Meteor Awards in the Best Irish Male category. Recorded in December 2005 at Dublin’s Olympia Theatre and released in June 2006 in both Ireland and the UK, Damien’s first ever live album, “Live at The Olympia”, entered the Irish album chart at Number 10. For the second year in a row Damien won Best Irish Male at the 2007 Meteor Awards.
2006 and 2007 have seen Damien touring extensively in Ireland, USA and Australia. He performed to a packed venue at SXSW - and went on to play further gigs across America. He then travelled to Australia to complete his first ever tour there. His performances there garnered him praise from both critics and punters alike.

His 4th studio album ‘To Hell Or Barbados’ takes it’s title from the Sean O’Callaghan book of the same name. This album shows development and incredible maturity from this exceptional artist, who returns with a new and very contemporary sounding album. A variety of musical styles from rock, folk, reggae, and even electronica combine to make this Dempsey’s most accomplished album yet. Ever the storyteller, Damo’s songs as always pull no lyrical punches. In “Serious” we hear a 2 way conversation with a drug dealer trying to tempt a potential client - or is this conversation between a man and his conscience? The electronica track “The City” is Damien’s homage to his hometown of Dublin. We see Damien’s lighter side in the album’s first single, the radio-friendly “Your Pretty Smile” and his trademark positivity in “Chase the Light”, “How Strange” and “Summer’s in my Heart”. The opening track “Maasai”, with it’s incredible vocal delivery, is about the ancient tribes and their warrior spirit. Damien’s love of Irish history and pride in his roots is reflected in the title track “To Hell or Barbados” which refers to Oliver Cromwell banishing 50,000 Irish as slaves to Barbados in the 17th century.

New Album & Single

Damien’s new album, “The Rocky Road” was set for release in June. SonyBMG will release a single in Ireland, “A Rainy Night in Soho” on May 30th and it will be available as a digital download as well on as CD.

The album features guest performers John Sheahan and Barney McKenna of The Dubliners and Sharon Shannon. Tracks include “The Rocky Road to Dublin”, “The Foggy Dew”, “The Hot Asphalt” and “A Rainy Night in Soho” among others.

Damien says, “Ballads are my roots, it was the first music that turned me on, and the first songs that I heard being sung in my home by friends and family. I would have over two hundred ballads in my head, and I used to sing them regularly in pubs around Dublin in the 1990’s. I reckoned I had a good feel for these songs, and as I studied Irish history, I felt I could really tell their story and do them some justice on an album.”