Sinéad O'Connor
The Lion And The Cobra

What is particularly striking about this album is not so much the extreme variety of styles that such a young, bald, androgynous artist managed to master with an eclecticism that only Nail by Foetus (1985) had previously achieved, but rather a haunted, dramatic voice that digs into the earth's bowels and brings forth that primal spirituality which is the very manifestation of nature.

"Jackie" is the emblem of a song carved in ancient rocks, a song that climbs tortuous paths from which there is no return, brilliant, daring, immortal like the marble laments of Lisa Germano, emotional like the landscapes of Ireland. Frightened by such epic nature, O'Connor, the chameleon, shifts with chameleon-like ease to a more comfortable power-rock ("Mandinka"), winking at the riot girls to come. A bit of Babes In Toyland, a bit of Ani DiFranco, one might say, but the anger is the same that fuels her compatriot O'Riordan. "Jerusalem" catapults us into the dreamlike world of a cosmic and alien space, as if it were by Peter Gabriel, but the cushioned "Just Like U Said It Would B" introduces us to the diptych of masterpieces "Never Get Old" and "Troy." The former, more metaphysical, sounds like a Diamanda Galás asking Nico for the microphone to sing over Laurie Anderson's "Big Science." "Troy", however, is not only the emotional peak of the album but is one of the most intense tracks human memory recalls. Sudden changes in register and rhythm, string instruments taking the lead, and a voice that is the only showcase of emotions. It is pain and anger. It is the compassion that the gods feel for men. It is the past. It is Troy burning. O'Connor's genius would never again be so uncontrollable and boundless. "I Want Your (Hands On Me)", indeed, perhaps too bouncy, has the task of closing the gap before the solemn "Drink Before The War", closer to human consolation than to divine despair. The concluding "Just Call Me Joe", perhaps a bit subdued, is the tiptoe ballad that seals this Gospel of modern female songwriting. Because indeed, in that year, Sinead O'Connor "will tread on the lion and the cobra; she will trample the young lion and the serpent. She will satisfy us with a long life and show us our salvation" (quote from the Bible, Psalm 91).