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Sinéad O’Connor In Rare U.K. Tour
After years of relative obscurity – did she really retire from the music business or not? – Irish chanteause Sinéad O’Connor is poised for a return to the stage. Although she was on Lilith Fair for a few shows and co-headlined a U.S. tour with the Chieftains – both in 1998 – it’s been many moons since U.K. and Irish citizens last saw the singer on tour.
She was booked on the U.S. Wotapalava festival tour in 2001, but dropped off citing unspecified family reasons.
Now, O’Connor is back for a handful of gigs, this time in England. As of press time, six shows are confirmed for November. It is unknown if more will be added to the lineup.
One month prior to her U.K. shows, O’Connor will release an album of traditional Irish songs called, Sean Nos Nua. The disc is her first work since 2000’s Faith And Courage.
“The way we have recorded them is to “sexy” them up with rhythms and sounds so that they can become part of what is new style,” said O’Connor of her new album. “Hence the record is called Sean Nos Nua – old style but new.”
O’Connor’s record label is giving fans an opportunity to preview some of her new material at vanguardrecords.com. It looks like a new song each week will be previewed right up until the October 8 release.
This year has indeed marked the return of Sinéad. Along with her new album and mini-tour, she also lent her voice to new albums from Massive Attack, Moby, and Conjure One.
Die-hard O’Connor fans will be pleased to learn that her epic track “Troy” was also released this summer. The album, which dropped August 12, features remixes on the tune, including those by PUSH and Rob Searle. “Troy” was originally a track on O’Connor’s 1986 debut LP, The Lion And The Cobra.