Review: Damien Dempsey/Kitty the Lion/Eoin Glackin - ABC, Glasgow

IT WAS very much a gathering of the faithful at this all-too-rare Scottish appearance by the magnificent Irish singer-songwriter Damien Dempsey, inspiring as he does a level of devotion in his fans as fiercely passionate as his music.

The product of a seriously tough upbringing in Dublin’s notorious Northside estates – as recalled here in the nakedly autobiographical Factories, Trains and Houses – he preaches a gospel of hope, resilience and inner resistance, as summed up in his classic, I’m Never Going to Let Your Negative Thoughts and Vibes Get Through to My Psyche and Cripple Me, whose punchy yet soulful reggae beat underscored his reputation as the Irish Bob Marley.

He welcomed us with the observation that doctors have started prescribing communal singing to alleviate depression, prompting a succession of massed word-perfect choruses to much of his set, which also included a superbly tumultuous version of The Rocky Road to Dublin – the title track of his most recent, all-traditional album – an incandescent, suitably shamanic Maasai and the deftly combined dub/Dublin rap of Patience.

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Ranging grandly from declamatory fury to beseeching tenderness, Dempsey’s voice also thrillingly revealed the ancient, primal tinge of sean-nós singing, in its intricate ornamentation and fiery raw edge, while his excellent five-piece band supplied alternately folky, rocked-up, lush and stripped-back arrangements.

A double helping of strong support featured “Damo” disciple and hotly-tipped successor Eoin Glackin, and the brilliantly mouthy Glasgow folk-pop five-piece Kitty the Lion.

RATING: *****

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