The real Queen of Pop Tori Amos premieres new single

I liked Cornflake Girl but don't really know much else.

Must check her out really. I'm so smitten with Kate Bush I've never given Tori Amos a chance.

Oh, azzaabb, you must, you really must.

Tori Amos is an exceptional talent. She's one of those people where it takes a little while to get your head around her work, but once you've really given her time, you will not be able to stop listening to her.

If you really are interested I could recommend some good starting points.

She's better than Kate Bush, and I say that as someone who loves Kate Bush.

Like any great artist whose had a long career, it's difficult to suggest a starting point to a new fan that accurately represents the totality of her work, as her music has evolved and changed.

Her 90s albums, particularly 1996's Boys For Pele and 98's From The Choirgirl Hotel are very angst ridden and angry. Most fans consider these two albums to be her best work and for good reason. Much like HIStory, they are art born out of tragedy and personal torment. Boys For Pele was about the breakup of a long term relationship, and Choirgirl was about her grief over her miscarriage. They aren't easy listening, and probably both require repeated listens from start to finish. But they are absolute dark masterpieces of unparalled beauty. Seriously, I defy anybody not to get goosebumps and marvel at the sheer majesty of songs like "Spark" or "iieee". We're talking Who Is It levels of brilliance here.

After she had a child, her music took a distinct transformation into a softer, more commercial sound, not so angry at the world. This divided a lot of fans, as it was marked change in her sound and most Tori fans are pretty harsh critics of her work. I still love her newer work though, it's just very different to what came before.

Definitely check out the two albums I mentioned and if you dig it, then I can suggest some more. If you don't like those two albums, then you don't like Tori Amos.

I will warn you now, once you "get it" there's no turning back and you will likely listen to nothing but Tori Amos for at least 2-3 years.

I'm slightly frightened! She sounds very deep! Better than Kate Bush?? That's a bold statement! I have noticed fans of her are completely obsessed with her work though so yes, I'm definitely intrigued. I'll check out those two albums next weekend and I might have some thoughts. It may take me a few listens. :cool:

So I had an early opportunity to give Choirgirl Hotel a listen. So here's some initial thoughts and keep in mind I don't know a whole lot about her.

Spark: I heard echoes of Kate Bush's The Dreaming, just in overall sound/style.

Cruel: an interesting sort of art-rock sound I remember from the mid to late 90's from the likes of Shirley Manson with Garbage; Stupid Boy that sort of thing. I would imagine Tori Amos was an influence on Manson.

Black Dove (January): I love the way the song builds from "by the woods, by the woods" to "the other side of the galaxy". There's remnants of Kate Bush's Moments of Pleasure from her The Red Shoes album. Kate Bush is clearly a massive influence on her.

Rasbery Swirl: I'm hearing lots of Kate Bush -Rubberband Girl comes to mind. The Kate Bush influence is evident throughout - Kate Budh is the only thing I can measure her against right now on my very first listen. It's a good thing by the way, she wears her influences on her sleeve but I'm beginning to hear her own distinct style coming through also.

Jackies Strength: I instantly loved this! And this was the moment I was waiting/looking for! The opening lyrics caught me; provocative words jump out. The string score against the piano; beautiful strings; emotive piano which she pounds and softens adding emense feeling, is magical. The melody is stunning, the vocal performance beautiful. Really an all round beautiful piece of work.

Iiee: By this point she truly sounds like her own artist. I think what I was hearing up until around the halfway point was other artists who -Kate Bush- influenced her massively, and equally, others who were influenced by her -Tori Amos- and took her sound to a more commercial market; Garbage, Bats For Lashes -who I really like and I suppose hasn't been commercially successful-, Florence + The Machine who blew up massively with this sound.

Liquid Diamonds: Very Kate Bush style in her vocals -I'm trying to drop that comparison and as I say it's not a bad thing and I'm new here. If someone told me this was Kate Bush I would probably believe it- I also think Lana Del Ray has taken a certain amount of influence from her. I love the spars drums against her plucky piano style on this.

She's Your Cocain: Nice little touch with no reverb on the vocals during the verse; very up close sounding.

Northern Lad: Beautiful melody, hints of Radiohead -or the other way around; Radiohead taking influence from Tori Amos- and an all round beautiful vocal and piano performance. The song title an ode to The Beatles? Probably not. 

Hotel: There's a lovely use of sequenced sounds that I like, she doesn't over use them and an interesting tempo change which gives it a back and forth or pushing and pulling feel. I also like how the organ sound on the outro is also on the intro to the next song.

Playboy Mommy: From here to Birmingham -another nod to the UK or is the place in America? I'll have to look into the ideas behind the album. A steel guitar country feel but it works very well, well a slight hint of a country feel.

Pandora's Aquarium: I can hear a bit of Pink Floyed in this! Actually I can hear a hint of Floyed in Kate Bush also, so perhaps it's that Bush influence again. Love the way it breaks and progresses. She has a great unique style. I love her out of tune "Pandora" at the end along with the out-of-tune note hit on the guitar; it plays into how she feels? Her life? The album? Just lets you with a feeling of imbalance or something out of place.

In all; really wonderful multi-layered album that demands tons of re-listens.

These are just some random thoughts on it all. She's very interesting and wonderfully talented. I'll be checking out more.

Wasn't planning or meaning to try to describe every song, just wanted to give some sort of feedback. I'm looking forward to another listen to this one.