Sinead O’Brien - Taking On Time

Song of the Day
Hosted by Kevin Cole
This week's picks for Song of the Day were chosen by Kevin Cole, host of The Afternoon Show on KEXP, highlighting standout artists from the 2020 Eurosonic Festival in Groningen, Netherlands. Today's Song of the Day is “Taking On Time” by Sinead O’Brien, from the 2019 album Speedy Wunderground - Year 4 on Speedy Wunderground.
photo by Zac Mahrouche
written by Janice Headley

Esteemed London-based label Speedy Wunderground celebrated their 30th release with a new track by Irish poet Sinead O’Brien. O’Brien's work has been published for years, including a short story of hers printed in the London Review Of Books. Punk poet John Cooper Clarke invited her to open for him on a spoken word tour, a moment that changed her life. "He actually introduced me to the music of Mark E. Smith – probably one of my most valuable references ever," she recalled in an interview with Loud & Quiet.

Like The Fall frontman, O’Brien recites her lines with a stoic cadence, an oratorical delivery, though hers is thick with an Irish brogue. 

“I would love people to dance to it,” she continued. “It’s the pace. I always try to do things faster than anyone will let me, then it gets pulled back just a tinge. Runaway, that’s my feeling. Always.”

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