Damien Dempsey announces new album Holywell, releases new track ‘The Mickey Dam’

Damien Dempsey has announced the release of his new album Holywell for June 26.

Additionally, he releases the record’s lead single ‘The Mickey Dam’ today, recorded in Wicklow’s Big Tree Studio with long-time collaborator John Reynolds.

Speaking about the song, Dempsey says : “I got this song from the singing of Frank Harte. It gives a humorous snapshot of the harsh life of Irish navvies who had to leave the oul sod and do back breaking, incredibly dangerous work in strange lands to put food in theirs and their families’ bellies.”

Check out ‘The Mickey Dam’ below:

Upcoming record Holywell is described as a deeply personal offering rooted in oral tradition, with Dempsey speaking of its songs as ones he “heard as a child, sung by my elders in houses and pubs at singsongs. Some are centuries old, and many people don’t know them.

“For me,” he continued, “they’re like a holy well – when I sing them, they bring healing to my soul.”

Accompanying the record, Dempsey will play a gig in the Iveagh Gardens, Dublin this summer, July 17.

Damien Dempsey’s upcoming album Holywell is available for pre-order here.