If you’d asked me to list the ten, fifty or even 100 artists I least expected to receive a promo of an upcoming release by in my inbox, Sinéad O’Connor still wouldn’t have made the list. And yet, here she is, with a new single.
While ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ has effectively defined her career musically, and her outspoken stance on the Catholic church have proven controversial and something of an obstacle for many, it’s hard to deny she’s an artist of rare integrity, or that she possesses a strong and compelling voice: ‘Mandinka’, from her 1987 debut, remains an utterly compelling performance.
Her latest release is likely to prove divisive: ‘The Foggy Dew’ was recorded in honour of the funeral re-enactment of Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa which took place on August 1st 2015. O’Donovan Rossa was a renowned leader of the Fenian movement in the 19th Century, seeking independence from Britain, and his burial in Dublin’s Glasnevin Cemetery on 1 August, 1915, was one of the largest political funerals in Irish history. The event has been organised by Sinn Féin ‘to pay tribute to the bravery, spirit and vision of the volunteers of 1916’.
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Given her history and current involvements, and indeed the context of this release itself, it’s hard to separate the performer from the politics. But politics stir deep passions, and here, O’Connor gives a rousing and powerful vocal performance against a murky, minimalist musical backdrop. Rousing is the word. It won’t be a hit, but O’Connor is beyond the vagaries of commercialism: this is about courage and conviction, and there’s no doubting hers.
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