Let’s Talk 2017 Tori Amos
A certain someone just made 2017′s Top 10 Albums of the Year according to Rollingstone Magazine, of all things. Did we ever expect our red-haired 90s pixie deity to rebound in such a spectacular fashion? Sure, the record sales aren’t the best; but whose are?
Her recent world tour (which I sadly had to miss due to grownup obligations) has garnered rave reviews, and despite being occasionally flawed, her latest release does indeed beckon back to so many of the things that carved out her place in the history of music. Honestly, it is a mixed bag, but there are moments of true humanity, resplendence, and profound insight if you can gather the strength to skip the (at this point, expected) throwaway tracks.
As a long time fan through the good, the disappointing, and the downright repellent (See: Abnormally Attracted to Sin’s track “Police Me”), it is wonderful to see the Patron Saint of my adolescence offer a relevant, beautiful and cohesive album to the world. When you add to the equation how spell-binding she remains as a live performer, anyone that has ever been touched by her deeply should (in my humble opinion) simply be left with a sense of gratitude and respect.
I am grateful that Tori Amos has survived the harshness of the music industry. I am grateful that after a quarter century she has regained some of her well-deserved (and sadly, at times deservedly lost) reputation as a sonic-adventurer that is hopelessly devoted to her muses. Above all, I am grateful that I have her courage, genius, and her fearless-to-a-fault vantage point to carry me through 2017 the same way that she carried me through my mother’s passing, coming out, and dealing with a couple toxic relationships.
It is marvelous surprise to see her back in the top 10, and her inconsistent, yet mostly astounding canon is the result of an artist that has for better and for worse proven that she not afraid to take risks and suffer the consequences of them. She is beautifully barbed. She is bold. She is potent, and best of all, she is still here. Long may she record, and long may she tour. With the world in its current state, I don’t think there are many artists as capable of helping us “ride out this storm,” and let’s face it.... We all need a safe place to cry sometimes.
