Australia is currently being blessed with what NPR rightly calls some of the most “stunning, cinematic” music of this decade.
“O’Neill is a cultural hero in her own right… a modern artist tapped into the ancient.” – New York Times
“The first indisputable classic of 2023” – Uncut (9/10 Album Review)
Her Album All of This is Chance is a smash-hit, known to many as an instant classic. O’Neill is heralded by not just music critics, but also by A-list celebrities, with Cillian Murphy and Margot Robbie gushing about the soulful impact of O’Neills music on the Peaky Blinder’s soundtrack, and beyond. Her music is highly individualistic, with a voice hard to put into words by those of us not granted entry into her ephemeral, ethereal mind.
Lisa has already stunned audiences at the Woodford Folk Festival, with founder Bill Hauritz noting that “the beauty, the humility and the innovation that she brings front and back stage in my view, reaches the pinnacle of what folk singing actually means.”
She now continues her Australian tour with fellow Irish musician Brian Leach playing hammer dulcimer, an instrument with such a beauty of sound. At WOMADelaide and WOMAD New Zealand, Lisa will share the stage with revered and award-winning concertina player Cormac Begley, one of Ireland’s most exciting artists (“the musical gift that keeps on giving” according to The Irish Times).
Lisa O’Neill 2024 Australia Tour
- Jan 19 – City Recital Hall, Sydney
- Feb 3 – Meeniyan Town Hall, South Gippsland
- Feb 7 – The Brunswick Ballroom, Melbourne
- Feb 9 – Bendigo Bank Theatre, Bendigo
- Mar 2 to 3 – Cobargo Folk Festival, Cobargo
- Mar 8 to 10 – WOMADelaide, Adelaide
- Mar 16 to 17 – WOMAD NEW ZEALAND, New Plymouth
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Her personal goal this trip is to learn the ancient tradition of verbal storytelling from the oldest civilisation on Earth, Indigenous Australians. Curious and connected, O’Neill gathers inspiration from every corner of the globe she can.
2023 was a huge year for O’Neill, “It really has been an amazing year, and it’s not over yet,” she said last month when we spoke. Not only with an earth-shaking album, but also with a powerful rendition of Fairytale Of New York with Glen Hansard and members of The Pogues and The Dubliners at Shane McGowan’s funeral.
In her own words, she told me this about Shane and his influence on her, and beyond; “Shane’s a brilliant songwriter, his voice is so unique. He’s very honest in his approach. Their sound is their own, you can feel the influence on the two countries he lived in. He was able to sing that and make that his own story. He might just be the best songwriter there’s ever been.”
Her time in Australia will be, at times, accompanied by long-time collaborator Cormack Begley. Begley helped her with her time on Peaky Blinders, and the two share a strong creative bond and understanding.
O’Neill has an inimitable voice, which takes her music to greater heights, or depths, depending on which way you look at it. No two people will have the same experience of this album or this live tour; but we will all come out of the experience profoundly changes. She writes from a constant state of wonderment.
She is an artist who paints a self-portrait of someone in love with nature, and yet perplexed by the ever-expanding gulf between nature and modern society. That divide is no match for O’Neill, who sings across it, while simultaneously digging deep into the land.
Even in my brief time with the artist, she seemed far away, as if transfixed by a world I couldn’t see. Colourful birds, moving constellations, and an understanding of self that is unshakable and indescribable. She understands that we are simply fragments in a world we are desperate to understand and explain.
This album brings us one step closer to that understanding. Inspired by poetry, such as Patrick Kavanagh, Irishness, and world commentary; O’Neill cannot be described by just a write-up. This is a journey that can only be undertaken by listening and learning, something O’Neill does wonderfully herself.
New and dedicated listeners can expect a new album in the future, O’Neill expressed her hunger to continue creating to me. Her hunger to continue to learn from some different stays across the world, and a hope that all can enjoy her music – live and recorded. She is a lover of the human spirit and the fuel that keeps it aglow.
Tickets to see Lisa O’Neill on tour are on sale now. Grab yours here.
