On the face of it, David Partridge’s latest musical release appears to be the polar opposite of his roots in punk rock, but a deeper look – and listen – reveals several parallels.
His fifth solo album Enough, released under the pseudonym Deep Pity, came out March 15. The four-song record touches on familiar themes through much of Partridge’s work.
“I always write about things that are heavy – that’s the nature of my songwriting,” Partridge said. “I never really want to play guitar when I’m feeling good… it’s when I’m bummed that I pick it up and try to work things out. It’s cheap therapy.”
While his 2025 release Hurt People focused mostly on one specific point of pain, Enough unpacks the musician’s thoughts on where the world, and society, is today.
“It’s kind of back to this existential hole of being, where all things feel crazy and digging into how I process that,” he said. “This is something that’s consistent across most of my songs, honestly.”
Like most artists, his love affair with music stretches back to childhood. He remembers messing around with a broken guitar at home as a young kid but started taking guitar lessons when he was 12.
Though he loved it immediately, he didn’t enjoy learning hit classics like The Eagles’ Hotel California. The flair just wasn’t there.
“I never really wanted to play any of the big commercial songs. I just wanted to write my own music,” Partridge said.
Learning the basics on guitar and figuring out how music can flow broke some sort of dam in Partridge’s mind. Since then, it’s been a constant waterfall of original content. He used to carry a notebook wherever he went, filling space anytime inspiration struck. Adapting to the new age of technology in recent years, he estimates he has around 500,000 words tucked away on his smartphone.
One of the songs on his latest release was penned 21 years ago.
“I decided to put it out now because I had three newer songs I already liked for my album and thought to myself ‘why not just put out a fourth song that I like’… usually, on all my previous records, there’s one song that I don’t like, but for this one I dare say that I like all of them. This is the first time where there doesn’t feel like an obvious weak link.”
His favourite thing about the album is how versatile it is, lyrically. He’s gotten feedback from listeners who have interpreted songs in different ways.
“I love that – I’ve talked to people who tell me a certain song hit home for them because of X, Y or Z and I know that’s not what it’s about, but it’s so cool hearing how different people hear and take my words,” he said. “A lot of people listen to my songs and go ‘you’re so sad’, but that’s not it at all… to me, it’s all about taking experiences and viewpoints that can be difficult and turning them into something beautiful.”
He sings, writes and produces all his material – and even performs most of the instruments. For Enough, he played the drums, guitar, bass, piano, mandolin, glockenspiel and melodica. His friend, Emma Ferner, collaborated on violin.
Partridge credits his move to the Highlands in 2021 with reinvigorating his love for music. He toured extensively with several bands in the late 90s and early 2000s and ran a music shop and recording studio in Milton from 2012-2019.
He draws inspiration from those around him – and the people across the world who listen to his material. He has 620,000 plays on Apple Music from across the globe.
Partridge says he’s not sure when he’ll get back to work at his home studio, but ideas are already percolating for a collaboration with a local poet that he hopes to work on later this year.
“There’s definitely a basking in the ‘I’m done’ part for now… but history shows I don’t stay there too long.”
