CD Review: Sinead O'Connor

How About I Be Me (And You Be You)? (One Little Indian/MRI)

Wed, Feb 22, 2012 at 4:00 am

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These days, Sinead O'Connor is better known for her tabloid-ready marriage problems than her music. Sort of the Lana Del Rey of her day, O'Connor's beguiling (bald) appearance, petulant stunts ("Fight the real enemy!"), and unpredictable music (Def Leppard guitars! Prince cover! "Funky Drummer" sample!) made her a popular media target before she even turned 25. But in an unexpected turn, she's made the sensible guitar-pop record of her life with How About I Be Me (And You Be You)? The hook of "The Wolf Is Getting Married" and the shuffling wedding tidy-up of "4th & Vine" aren't just gorgeous — they're funny and happy and sarcastic and foul-mouthed. Two different songs extol the lovers who make her laugh, while the deliciously angry "Queen of Denmark" uses crashing guitars to punctuate her pissing in your coffee. — Dan Weiss