Damien Dempsey - Soulsun (2017)

2017 release from the Irish singer/songwriter. An award-winning artist in his home country of Ireland - he has several prestigious Irish Meteor Awards to his name including Best Irish Male and Best Traditional Folk Award - and seventeen years into an astonishing career, Damien Dempsey releases his seventh studio album, Soulsun, possibly his most exciting work to date. The record features a stellar cast of female guest vocalists, referred to in the sleeve notes as 'the mighty Celtic Warrior High Queens'. Dido joins Damien on a tender love song, Beside the Sea' and fellow Dubliner, Imelda May, appears on 'Big Big Love', an anthemic mid-tempo rock love song, showing a bolder, more contemporary sound that Dempsey explores on the album. Finally, 'Pretty Bird Tree' features Dingle singer Pauline Scanlon, a regular collaborator over the years. Soulsun was recorded with long-term producer and collaborator, John Reynolds in north London. Damien lived in the English capital for months, immersing himself in writing songs and soaking up inspiration from London's rich tapestry of all human life.