Everything is True: Paul Dempsey goes solo

It’s sometimes dangerous when a frontman breaks out their own.

But I am loving Paul Dempsey’s new album! It wasn’t a must-buy album for me, I’ve been eternally disappointed by most of Something For Kate’s offerings. But Dempsey, on his own, is a big step away from the heavy, overladen songs of the latter days of his band’s work. The songs have a rawness missing from SFK’s overproduced drones. He’s dropped the heavy bass that dragged down Echolalia and allowed melody to take a front seat. The result is fresh and tuneful, particularly in the first few songs, which breathe light and summer and truth – there’s no over manufactured acoustic rock here. This music is totally listenable, and sits somewhere between the profundity of a seasoned songwriter and the unchecked enthusiasm of a first time offering.

The first few songs display the strongest melodic work in the album: Bats, Take us to your Leader and Ramona Was a Waitress are pure pleasure. The second half of the album is a little heavy – not in content, but the songs are weighed down by that SFK bassline – old habits die hard, apparantly. That said, there’s some beautiful lyrical work happening here:

“Are you missing a stranger you might have loved?”

and

“Desire only burns and/envy’s always green /a mind can only race and a heart can only beat” both from Safety in Numbness.

I hope this isn’t the long time frontman’s only foray into solo work – there is energy here, and the brighter melodies of Everything is True will attract a whole new group of fans. If Something For Kate is good music for grey skies, Paul Dempsey is sunlight breaking through.

If you still need convincing, have a little listen on his MySpace, but if you like light melodies, soulful singing and pretty poetry, go straight to your local record shop and inject some dollars into the Australian music industry!