REVIEW | Sinead O'Connor
CONCERT
Sinead O'Connor ★★★½
Perth Concert Hall | Review by Nick Sas
It is pretty hard not to be captivated at a Sinead O’Connor concert.
The Irish singer, ingrained in our collective consciousness with her shaved head and teary eyes, is a spectacle in every sense of the word.
From her well-publicised battles with religion, mental illness and the music industry to being somewhat of a spokesperson for the marginalised, it has endeared her to the public – which was on show when the 48-year-old walked out on stage on Saturday, some giving her a standing ovation from the get go.
Dressed in tight jeans, a leather jacket and a t-shirt emblazoned with Irish colours within an outline of her home country, she still has the shaved head, she still has that biting Irish wit and by all accounts – and judging from Saturday night - she’s still up for a fight.
But ignoring all the background noise, it is the music that matters.
And for the majority of Saturday night’s performance the Irish las showed she still has the vocal chops, the songs – and the jokes - to rival anyone on the planet.
Kicking things off with the bombastic John Grant cover Queen of Denmark from her 2012 album How About I Be Me (And You Be You), O’Connor looked slightly nervy, her voice a little drowned out by the three-guitar assault. It was a similar story during 4th and Vine from the same album.
And it wasn’t until about four songs in, the piano ballad 8-Good Reasons from I’m Not Bossy, I’m The Boss - her album of last year - that she really began to shine.
During the ballads O’Connor sings with her eyes closed, as if pushing herself to another dimension.
It is a poignant image, you could even say she looks like she’s praying – perhaps to the music gods.
The strong ballads kept coming, with O’Connor – who has attempted suicide on multiple occasions – dedicating a stirring rendition of Harbour to Whitney Houston’s daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown, who is still in a coma after recently attempting suicide.
The vocal harmonies of In This Heart, another highlight of the night, followed with O’Connor joined on the centre microphone with her band mates.
Her voice was impeccable all night, with the acoustics of the Perth Concert Hall – and the respectful audience – allowing the music to swirl around the room.
And, being Irish, she was also up for the craic.
“I hope my butt looks good from there,” she said to the couple hundred sitting behind her in the choir stalls at the venue.
She got the biggest reception of the night when she stuffed up the lyrics to the fantastic Thank You for Hearing Me, incorporating a few standard Irish F-words into the song.
While later, after returning to a raised platform on the stage for Streetcars, the first of a two-song encore, she made fun of Madonna’s recent fall at the Brit Awards, a light-hearted jab considering the duo’s chequered history.
It was a little unfortunate that her most famous song, the inimitable Nothing Compares 2U, was spoilt by her horrible guitar playing.
Though she is obviously trying to do something different to a song she has played probably thousands of times over the past 24 years, perhaps the guitar should be left in Ireland next time.
It was a slight anti-climax to what was, overall, a great performance.
