More about: Sinead O'Brien

The punk poetry of burgeoning Irish musician Sinead O'Brien chimes so dramatically alongside the instruments of her band at The Windmill in Brixton tonight, that the audience are on the edge of their seats. Instrumentation follows poetry through a range of emotions.

With only thirty spaces, the gig is intimate and easy to disappear into; the audience are very quiet and there to do nothing but listen and focus. The guitarist is nodding along as if in a dream world, while Sinead opens up her diary of poems: entries you want to hear, and others you don't but are irresistibly drawn to.

The performance starts with 'Most Modern Painting', kicking the night off with a bang in its talk of addiction and dark places. Pushing and pulling, it's a song that give us insight into a mind both conscious and unconscious. 

’Fall With Me', Sinead admits, is "something a bit downbeat...More Ronnie Scott's than you might think". She brings a heartfelt track reminiscent of this last half year: "you can't imagine the state that we're in" she speak-sings.

Unreleased track ‘Kid Stuff’ meanwhile, is about a "nice experience I had.. I rediscovered the child in me".

'Taking on Time' leaves us wanting more: an addictive snippet into her world that again peeks into darker places. Between tracks, Sinead talks softly, describing their subject matter and what her band brings to each. Her new EP is out in the world and she's delighted.

In her first live performance in six months, Sinead O’Brien proves that she'll be captivating much larger audiences when a vaccine is eventually available. Such intimacy and rhythm lie within her music, reeling the audience irresistibly in.

More about: Sinead O'Brien