They Don't Teach This Shit In School

Damien Dempsey is a soul singer in the truest sense of the word. OK so he's no Al Green, but the 23-year-old from Donaghmede is incapable of being anything other than honest and giving anything less than 100% every time he opens his mouth to sing.

The spiritual offspring of Bob Marley and Luke Kelly, Dempsey pours part of his soul into every syllable, even if his lyrics are sometimes a tad naive. Here, his strong Dublin accent is tempered somewhat by the presence of a full band (which is mainly made up of The Sofas), who provide the brilliant hooks from which he hangs his heartfelt songs. On the fabulous 'Seanchai', for example, Eamon Galldubh's mournful uileann pipes blend seamlessly with the vibey, almost reggae beats, leaving Damien's voice to soar overhead.

Then there's 'Colony', which mightn't be the most comfortable of topics amidst the affluent Celtic cubs of the new millennium, as he condemns the aggressors of yesteryear throughout the globe: "You took what was not yours/ Went against your own bible/ You broke your own laws/ Just to outdo your rival".

'Chillin' is like that stuff advertised on the telly in that it does exactly what it says on the tin, while the vibrant 'NYC Paddy' will undoubtedly draw comparison with Christy Moore or Luka Bloom. 'It's Important', meanwhile, must be the first song ever to namecheck James Connolly, Bob Marley, Daniel O'Connell and Nelson Mandela. There's also a highly polished version of the infectious 'Dublin Town', which sounds full of the joys of summer even though it manages to take a few swipes at poverty and unemployment along the way.

Dempsey isn't just about political commentary, though. Both 'Jealousy' and the title track deal earnestly with relationships, 'Beside The Sea' is a simple, but lovely ballad and 'Bad Time Garda' isn't nearly as controversial as it sounds. The hilarious 'I've No Alibi' is a brilliantly virtiolic verbal assault, lampooning the boy band culture, with more killer couplets than your average Tarantino script: "I could dress up like a gangster rapper and pretend I'm from the street/ Even If I was a rich white idiot."

They Don't Teach This Shit In School? They should change the curriculum.