ryzgee

I'm of course familiar with the name Sinead O'Connor but I can't say that familiarity extends to any of her music. Even the big single "Nothing Compares 2 U" didn't ring any bells, so all of this was fresh on me.

I've thoroughly enjoyed being served this album today. There's a gentle acoustic intimacy and deep vulnerability entwined with some genuinely interesting rhythmic patterns and instrumentation, where her Irish heritage really shines through. I can absolutely see how this would have appealed on release, touching upon difficult but relatable personal subjects and laying O'Connor's soul searching journey bare for all to see, whilst retaining a strong sense of authenticity and raw unfiltered energy. O'Connor had a wonderful voice packed with character, and she had a great knack for restraint and release between a soft whisper and an almost primal roar.

Kind of slacker Americana for the most part with frequent bouts of pretentiousness. It often attempts to pull off post rock -esque grandeur but ultimately there's very rarely any kind of meaningful pay off. Bored me to tears.

There was a time in my life, around when this was released that I had a brief dalliance with UK grime, as it began exploding in popularity. I don't listen to the style much, if at all now as it's not really "me" these days, but this album and Skepta's brother JME's Integrity soundtracked my summer of 2016.

Skepta is the lesser of the two siblings in my view as a lyricist and as an MC, although he's no slouch, but this undoubtedly benefits from a superb production job, which is the primary reason I do revisit this once in a while. The low end on here is absolutely filthy. There's also a sense of defiance and rejection of commerciality running through this album which continues to appeal to me, as well as the gritty British-tinged urban themes.

"Hmmm, been going on a little while has this, surely it's nearly over?"
*checks Spotify*
Track 6.
In fairness it's not that bad, just fairly unremarkable punk with a pound shop Lou Reed droning and whining over the top of it, which probably makes it feel much longer than it actually is. I managed to push on through to the end, but there wasn't a great deal which really perked up my ears.

I've zero interest in sickly sweet sanitised pop music like this. Exactly the sort of music you'd hear in H&M. Also her carbon footprint is ridiculous.