Paul Dempsey: Solo and Loving It

From being signed to a major record label at the age of seventeen to releasing seven studio albums with one of the most successful bands in the country, Paul Dempsey has created a well respected place for himself in the Australian music industry.

At the end of last year Dempsey released what was technically his second solo album, the first under his own name, Everything Is True.

The record, which has been received extremely well, made many people question - why release a solo album? Why not write and record what could be the next Something For Kate album?

“It was actually Clint and Steph's idea” claims Dempsey, referring to the other two members of Something For Kate, “they thought it was time for something different”.

With a diehard fan base already cemented, any release from the croaky voiced songwriter is bound to be a success however there is always an element of risk when stepping out alone.

“To be honest I hoped people would like it and I'm really thrilled with how it has been received but I didn't have any expectations.”

Dempsey's relaxed approach to offering up new works is something only acquired by a seasoned professional.

“The most important thing to me is that I'm writing something that I care about and that I'm happy with it, then everything that happens after that is just icing on the cake.”

In a way the front man contradicts himself slightly when asked which of his many past recordings he is most proud of.

“I have a really difficult relationship with our back catalogue, I'm really happy with all of the songs we have written but I resent the way that once they are recorded and released on an album they are frozen in time, it frustrates me because I like things to evolve.”

This less than positive outlook provides a bleak predicament for a recording artist but does give some insight into the rare mind of Mr. Dempsey.

“To me [recording] is just a document and that's just the way you played the song on that day.”

His latest release comes in the form of the Bats EP which contains cover versions of the Everything Is True singles ‘Out The Airlock’ and ‘Ramona Was A Waitress’ performed by Claire Bowditch and Oh Mercy respectively.

When asked about the new versions a very modest Dempsey mentions that he stayed out of the process as he felt sheepish about asking other artists to cover his songs.

“I don't feel like they are covers at all, I don't feel like I have any kind of claim over them, they really made brand new songs and all credit to them.”

Since the release of Everything Is True Dempsey has been touring heavily to promote the record with a live band made up of some very well known Australian musicians. The group consists of members from Dallas Crane, The Drones and the Claire Bowditch band, a mix that Dempsey claims was not intentional.

“They are just friends of mine and it’s nice to tour and play with friends.”

By now the giant elephant in the room (that is wearing a Something For Kate T-Shirt) starts to creep forward and the topic of discussion is turned to the future of the band, which according to Dempsey is looking positive with a new record planned for next year.

“Between now and the end of the year I'll be working on it and writing” claims Dempsey who mentions that he plans to move to New York in May to promote the solo record and hopefully play a show every night whilst writing during the day.

“New York is a great place to do some writing and as soon as it feels like there is enough stuff then we will hopefully be recording around the end of the year.”

As for the type of sound the band will be aiming for the frontman says that it is never something that is planned.

“We don't really approach things by choosing a direction, ideas come and we just kick them around so I have no idea what kind of a record it is going to be.”

The end of our discussion turns to a subject I feel Dempsey may have some interesting opinions on. Throughout his career he has always been signed to major labels, and the musical movement of today is heading in a more independent direction, with some artists trying to cut record labels out of the process and release music direct to consumers.

In what seems like a rare situation Dempsey claims that he has never had a problem with labels telling him what to do and has always had total freedom.

“I do think that the anti-major label attitude is a bit naive, I have been on major labels for thirteen years and I've never been pushed around or had decisions made for me that I wasn't happy with.”

As for other bands or artists that feel they have been given a raw deal by their record label, Dempsey's advice is simple and direct - “Get a lawyer”.

He continues by saying that most of the bands that complain may not have been smart about how they approached their contracts.

“We're not really the most successful band, we haven't sold as many records as Living End or whatever, but we've been allowed to do what we want to do because we held on to the reigns tight and paid close attention to how things operate and looked out for our interests, so we never got screwed.”

For someone who has been releasing successful music for as long as he has, Dempsey could not be more modest or polite. Let's hope that he continues to make those recordings that frustrate him so much for many years to come.

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