A Deep Dive Into the Discography: Tori Amos
One thing I don't talk a ton about on my blog is music. I love music. It really comforts me when I'm sad. It makes me happier. It can help bring me out of depression or calm my anxiety. There are so many artists that have impacted me in really profound ways, so I thought I would start a new little series that I would update periodically called "A Deep Dive Into the Discography," where I would take a look a the discography of some of my favorite artists and rank their albums based on my preferences. I'm also paying homage to one of my favorite podcasts "Race Chaser." Just a little housekeeping. Most of the artists will be women because female artists are my jam. And in order for me to cover a discography the artist needs to have released five albums.
Tori Amos is my number one. If you know me, you know that. She is a goddess. I'm obsessed with her. I love her. She is getting ready to release her sixteenth studio album, "Ocean to Ocean," tomorrow, so now is the perfect time for a deep dive. Tori initially was in kind of like a synth group called "Y Kant Tori Read," but she released her first full solo album, "Little Earthquakes" in 1992. I am ranking all of Tori's albums except for "Gold Dust," which is technically a studio album but contains no new material. It's all old songs with orchestral arrangements. I will say that I can find lots of good in most Tori releases, even if they are not my favorite. So, just because it may rank lower, it doesn't mean that the album is bad or I don't like it. As always, music is subjective and these are opinions. Now, let's get to it with 14-8.
I will admit that it is probably a cop out to put Tori's one full length seasonal release as my least favorite album in her discography. It totally is. It is the album I spend the least time with because I listen to it in such a limited time frame. "Midwinter Graces" is not your traditional Tori album or holiday album. There aren't the songs that you'd expect to find. Tori took a more traditional/classical approach. It has a baroque style and it kind of feels like a precursor to "Night of Hunters." It is almost like she came up with the idea for that album while recording this one.
Tori takes these classical holiday hymns and puts her own twist on them. For a lot of them, she doesn't just sing them, she writes new lyrics, she changes up the melodies, more so than a lot of holiday albums she truly makes these songs her own. And honestly, because of that, you could probably listen to this album all winter long, not just at holiday time. I love "Star of Wonder," with the strings and the Middle Eastern instrumentation and feel. "Jeanette, Isabella" is my favorite of the non-Tori originals. I don't think I had heard it before and I just think it's really, really beautiful. It gives me the feeling of wrapping myself up in a warm blanket on a winter's night while the snow is falling. Of the Tori originals, I really heart "Pink & Glitter," which I think is an unpopular choice. The lyrics can be a little twee but I just love the jazzy arrangement and who wouldn't want to shower the world with pink & glitter?
14. "Abnormally Attracted to Sin" (released 5/19/09)
"Abnormally Attracted to Sin" is Tori's tenth studio album. It is the album of hers that I struggle with the most. I find it really difficult to connect with and while I have garnered more of an appreciation for it over the years, it is still the album of hers that I believe is the weakest. The three albums leading up to this one were all concept albums, all of them containing an overarching theme. This album saw a return to her more personal roots. A lot of the songs were inspired by a trip she took to California while she was there for San Diego Comic Con to promote her "Comic Book Tattoo" graphic novel. She visited some of the places she used to frequent when she was recording her debut album in the early '90's.
I think that "Abnormally Attracted to Sin" starts out incredibly strong. The opening foursome of "Give," "Welcome to England," "Strong Black Vine," and "Flavor" are amazing. I love the electronica sound and I really wish that it would have continued throughout the remainder of the album. Unfortunately, we get a lot of weird, acoustic-y, generic sounding like AC (adult contemporary) songs. "Abnormally Attracted to Sin" is 17 tracks long and it probably only needed to be 11. Tori struggles with editing her albums down. Where she used to have B-sides for every album, it feels like in later releases she sort of just throws them all on there and the pacing suffers. Later on, there are a couple more songs that are great. The mother to mother ballad, "Maybe California," one of her first songs about growing older, "Curtain Call," my personal favorite on the album, "Fast Horse." But then there is "500 Miles," a song that doesn't even feel like Tori wrote it. It sort of feels like a song you'd find on a Hootie and the Blowfish record. The album closes with my least favorite Tori song, the lounge-y, meandering "Lady In Blue."
13. "Strange Little Girls" (released 9/18/01)
"Strange Little Girls," her sixth record, is an album of covers. Again, pretty easy to justify ranking it lower since it contains no original material. This was Tori's last album for Atlantic Records and rather than just release a generic greatest hits, she decided to do this covers album with a Tori twist. Each of the songs on "Strange Little Girls" was written by a man about a woman. Tori reinterprets these songs from the viewpoint of the woman that is being sung about. It's a great concept in theory, but for the most part, you wouldn't know that was what she was doing unless someone told you.
The standout track on the album and the one I think really illustrates and benefits from this concept is her cover of Eminem's "97 Bonnie & Clyde." The original song is Eminem taking his young daughter to dump her mother's dead body, which is in the trunk of the care they are in, off a pier. Tori sings the song from the perspective of the dead woman in the trunk and the effect is genuinely chilling. The whole song is so unsettling. Tori recorded her vocals enclosed in a coffin-like box to get the effect of singing from inside a trunk and I legit don't think I've ever heard her voice sound this way and I hope to God I never do again. It is the highlight of the record hands down. For me, the other stand out tracks are a cover of Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, "Rattlesnakes," and Joe Jackson's "Real Men." There are some covers that don't work particularly "Happiness Is a Warm Gun" which becomes a rumination on the Second Amendment. The song includes voice snippets from both Presidents Bush and her dad. I think the message really gets lost in translation.
"Strange Little Girls" was released a week after 9/11 and what always sticks out for me is a performance of the Tom Waits song, "Time," on The Late Show with David Lettermen on the album's release date. Tori was the first musical guest Dave had on the show post 9/11 and this performance is maybe my favorite live performance of Tori ever. I'm including it here so you can watch it if you want and I strongly encourage you to do so.
"The Beekeeper," her eighth album, was the second in Tori's trio of concept albums from her first few years at Epic. Tori has talked a lot about how she loves beekeeping and how she sort of relates that to female sensuality which is sort of the theme of this record. When it was released, the songs were clumped into six different "gardens:" Roses and Thorns, Herbs and Elixers, The Desert Garden, The Greenhouse, The Orchard and The Rock Garden. The deluxe edition of the album even came with a seed packet of wildflower seeds that were curated especially for the album.
"The Beekeeper" is not a favorite of a lot of hardcore Tori fans and I can understand why. This is where a lot of Tori fans say she lost her edge. And again, I can see and understand that feeling. "The Beekeeper" definitely has a softer feeling to it then a lot of her previous records. I can understand it. This is an exploration of femininity and motherhood so it may be a bit... tamer than her previous records. There are some clunkers like "Ireland." Seriously, it is difficult to defend a song that opens with the lyrics "Driving in my Saab, on my way to Ireland." There is also "Hoochie Woman." It's a song I am surprised that Tori wrote just because of woman blaming and sort of anti-feminist message. I hope she just kind of forgets this song exists and the rest of us can too.
There are some fantastic songs on "The Beekeeper." I love the title track. It pulses with that same electronica vibes that will carry over to "Abnormally Attracted to Sin" and the lyrics about bargaining with death for more time with our loved ones are especially poignant after the passing of Tori's beloved mother, Mary. "Sweet the Sting" is a favorite. It's one of Tori's more straightforward songs, lyrically and melodically, but I love it, particularly the choir providing background vocals. "Toast" is a perfect album closer. I really adore the unfairly maligned ode to her daughter, Tash, "Ribbons Undone." This song gets a ton of hate from fans that I don't understand. I think it's beautiful and it makes sense that she would write this considering the trouble she had conceiving. I'm not a parent, but it hits me in the feels each time I hear it.
It might be heresy to some to rate a pre "Scarlet's" album, her fifth overall, of new material this low, but I stand firm in my choice and my feelings on this album. "To Venus and Back" is a double album. The first disc, "Venus. orbiting," is all new material and the second disc, "Venus. still orbiting" is live songs recorded during Tori's Plugged '98 Tour.
First off, I'll say, the second disc is great. Tori live is always a treat, especially in this era. We got a couple of B-sides, "Cooling" and "Purple People." I am kind of obsessed with "Purple People," so this album will always be special to me for introducing that particular track to me.
The new tracks are fine, but none of them are my absolute favorites. None of them are ones that I find myself wanting to queue up which is surprising, particularly from an album from this era. I'm not one who shuns all of Tori's later era content, but I can admit those earlier songs hit differently than a lot of the later ones. "Josephine" is my favorite song on "To Venus and Back." I love the old school militaristic vibe. I love how short and succinct it is. There is another song called "Josephine" by Brandi Carlile that gives me similar vibe's to Tori's and I've always been curious if Tori inspired Brandi. "Glory of the '80's" is another standout for me. And "Bilss" begins with the absolute dynamite line, "Father, I killed my monkey. I let him out to taste the sweet of spring." Seriously, *chef's kiss.* I'm not a huge fan of "Datura." I know people swear by it and while I can appreciate Tori sort of experimenting here, it doesn't work for me. There is also "Riot Poof" which is in my top 5 least favorite Tori songs ever. All in all, it just feels like she is kind of phoning it in for a lot of "To Venus and Back."
"American Doll Posse," her ninth album, is the completion of the concept album trilogy post her Atlantic Records days. It finds Tori taking on the guises of various personas or dolls and singing songs from their perspectives. The dolls are: Tori, Santa, Clyde, Isabel and Pip. They combine to form one full woman and at the time the album was released they each had their own blog. Fun.
This is another example of the concept feeling a bit unnecessary. At least to me. I think it's fun and I embrace Tori living her drag queen fantasy with these different characters and looks, but I think if you take the concept away, the album still works. So, it just makes the overall concept feel a bit of a throwaway.
I find myself coming back to "American Doll Posse" a lot. There are so many songs that I just feel are so beautiful and haunting. It has some really phenomenal piano ballads like "Digital Ghost" and "Girl, Disappearing." "Yo George" is at times very simple and yet incredibly damning of W. "I guess, its just the madness of King George." I love that lyric. I can't get enough of the lyrical brilliance of "Roosterspur Bridge." I think that "Dragon" is one of the most underrated songs in her catalogue. "Almost Rosey" is one of my top Tori songs and I hope that I will get the chance to hear it live during the "Ocean to Ocean" tour next year. "Father's Gun" feels like a lost song from Elton John and Bernie Taupin's "Tumbleweed Connection" writing sessions. The editing criticism rears its ugly head here. The shorter interludes could probably have been omitted. I don't feel like they bring too much to the party aside from "Programmable Soda." I mean, what is "Posse Bonus?" "You Can Bring Your Dog," "Mr. Bad Man," and "Velvet Revolution" probably could have been B-sides, too.
"Unrepentant Geraldines," her fourteenth album, was heralded as her return to pop music after her previous two albums dabbling in classical music. The album pulls from a number of places like classical art movements and growing older in the music business. The latter not surprising since Tori turned 50 the year before the album was released.
I am a pretty staunch defender of "Unrepentant Geraldines." There feels like there is a set of Ears with Feet aka hardcore Tori fans, who don't like the record and I'm here to tell you, they are wrong. Do you love classic Tori piano ballads? Well, this record has you covered with gorgeous compositions like "Oysters" and "Selkie." And we can't forget the unconventional love song to her husband, Mark, "Wild Way." Do you like the more band heavy tracks? Well, guess what this album has "America," "Wedding Day" and the driving, tempo changing title track. The deluxe version of "Unrepentant Geraldines" has three bonus tracks some only available in certain places, but none of them are throwaways. I know people complain about it but there are Tori fans, myself included, who kind of like the nonsense whimsical songs like "Giant's Rolling Pin."
I'm not even going to say anything negative about this record, but it's great. It's great all the way through. It's not that this record is subpar, but we are at the midway point and there are just records that are better.
So, we are going to end it here. I'm sure my fellow EWFs have some strong feelings about the first half of this list and I want to hear them! Please, flood the comments. I want to read them. And enjoy "Ocean to Ocean." I started playing it towards the tail end of writing this.
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