18th-Century Punk Rock.

I wasn't an immediate Tori Amos fan - in fact, it took me quite a while to cotton to her. Some of my friends were fans from way back, some were bonafide Church of Tori heads, but it never rubbed off on me. I guess I callously assumed her music was all pixies and periods. I had her pigeonholed as a beJewelled Enya with a crunchy Ani DeFranco topping. But I never actually listened to her records, and somehow the singles like "Crucify" and "Caught a Light Sneeze" didn't leave much of an impression either.



Then one day I broke up with my boyfriend, and he was retarded enough to leave his CD wallet in my car. Perusing my new collection, I happened to stick "Boys for Pele" in the changer. It was one of those "where have you been my whole life" experiences. Given the occassion, it's not that surprising: the title, of course, refers to the custom of sacrificing boys to the Volcano Goddess.



This album is incredible. First of all, I know that "Caught a Light Sneeze" is like a vulgar pop song for hard-core Toriphytes, and I know I said it never made an impression on me when I heard it "casually" as it were on TV or the radio...but on closer examination, this has to be one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard. To me, and naturally many will disagree, it's the quintessential Tori track. I listen to it and I freaking believe in fairies. The heavy, erotic drums, the gothic harpsichord, and her breathy vocals and stream-of-consciousness lyrics - she has really created something fascinating here. Ok, I played it for my dad and he liked it, which would normally cause me to reconsider my position on the matter, but Tori is one of those artists who can "cross over" simply because she's GOOD, and there's no point anybody arguing!



So you may not always understand what the hell Tori is talking about in her songs, but she has a knack for coining phrases that grab you by the seat of your pants. She is a real poet, and her delivery is impeccable. Some people say she's too precious or pretentious, but personally I love it when an artist doesn't give the whole show away, leaves an element of mystery in the art, and isn't afraid of experimenting and pushing it. Every Tori Amos album has been an experiment, "Boys for Pele" being basically the "harpsichord test," described by the Amazon reviewer as "gothic-pop chamber music." My favorite examples of this are "Blood Roses" with its heady lyrics ("I shaved every place that you've been boy"), and "Talula" ("got my rape hat on...honey but I always could accessorize") - ghostly, lacey, dramatic songs that do indeed sound like 18th-century punk rock sometimes.



Anybody who's willing to really give a Tori Amos record a spin might wind up getting addicted, and since she's always trying new things in turn, each of her albums is a potential conversion experience. "Boys for Pele" worked on me, and I've since come to appreciate her whole catalogue, especially her later work. This one is the real deal.

A masterpiece!

Boys For Pele, an album full of emotion, soul, brave lyrics and odd musical arrangements. Tori Amos is an artist who should not only be admired for her musical skills, but for her strength, her capacity of fighting her demons, crying, and battling life, right there in front of an audience.



The album's highlights are many. "Horses" gives the album a weird and freaky start. It gives an impression of crazyness and loneliness. "Blood Roses" introduces the listener to the external and internal fight in a relationship, and things start to be very violent from there. "Father Lucifer" is very introverted, a journey to the soul darkest secets and troubles. "Professional Widow" a constant bitching and shouting to everything, and "Caught a Lite Sneeze" a sincere crying and rage of a lost relationship. "Talula" then becomes a point where she learns to dance with the people that come in and out of her life, and understands that they all become a part of who we are. The album then wraps up with more confusing subjects, dealing with self-responsability in pain and a certain kind of masochism in pain, as it is obvious in "Hey Jupiter" and "Putting The Damage On."



But as everything Tori does, it is open for discussion and much reading and investigation. All soungs are entities, full of soul, body, mind and secrets. It's up to you to get to know them and feel them. Build a relationship with them.

Tori Amos' Best Work

I have listened to Tori Amos since LE and this is, by far, my favorite album. There is a lot of substance and mythology in this album. It is an excellent concept and the next logical progession after LE (stream of conscious..autobiographical) and UTP (abstract)... If I could only own one Tori cd, this would be it. If I could only own two, it would be this and From the Choirgirl Hotel