Popular Music - March 2016

Tori Amos - Strange Little Girls
Tori Amos - Unrepentant Geraldines
Beyonce - Beyonce
Paul Dempsey - Everything Is True
Eskimo Joe - A Song is a City
Eurythmics - Be Yourself Tonight
Peter Gabriel - So
george - Unity
Jars of Clay - If I Left the Zoo
Katie Noonan's Vanguard - Transmutant
Radiohead - Kid A
Tears for Fears - The Seeds of Love
Megan Washington - There There


My somewhat fitful revisiting of the Jars of Clay catalogue continued with their 3rd album, If I Left the Zoo, which I would generally rate as my favourite of all their albums. Which in typical fashion means it's the album that marked a decrease in their popularity from their initial success.

So why is it my favourite? Fundamentally it's because I feel there aren't any weak songs, with each having its own distinct style. There are upbeat numbers, mid-tempo ones and slow ones, and they all contribute, and at no stage do I start getting bored.

A big part of the success is the production. It has lots of quirky little touches which heighten the interest without overwhelming the songs. It also makes sure that the songs sound sufficiently different from each other while still belonging together. There isn't anything on the first 2 albums that is quite as distinctive as the toy piano on "Sad Clown" or the mandolin on "No One Loves Me Like You" (even though they had used mandolin before) or the gospel choir on "I'm Alright".

The other album I think is worth mentioning is Unrepentant Geraldines, simply because I found myself listening to it so regularly. While I love all of Tori Amos' albums, some of them are undoubtedly challenges that I have to be in the right mood for. Their length or intensity means that I will only reach for them occasionally. Geraldines, with its warmth and intimacy, seems to have become an album I can listen to just for the sheer pleasure of listening to Tori Amos. I see the album on my iPhone, start hearing the opening of "America" in my head and it's a gentle invitation.

(Apologies for the tacky video, just close your eyes...)

May 2014 - Popular Music

Tori Amos

• Little Earthquakes
• Under the Pink
• From the choirgirl hotel
• Unrepentant Geraldines

Avicii - iTunes New Year's Eve Mix
Joe Cocker - The Essential Collection
Patty Griffin - American Kid
Jars of Clay - The Long Fall Back to Earth
Wendy Matthews - Ghosts
John Mayer - Battle Studies
Janelle Monae - Metropolis Suites II and III
Katie Noonan and the Captains - Emperor's Box
Over the Rhine - Ohio

Yes, a new Tori Amos album came out. Yes, I like it. A lot. Any surprises there?

Unrepentant Geraldines is warm, relaxed, confident, small-scale and intimate. It's entirely a family affair, with Amos and her husband performing all the instruments, and their daughter contributing one guest vocal. A highly impressive guest vocal, one might add.

Perhaps one of the most impressive things about the album is that it generally hides this relative lack of resources extremely well. It's true that there are far more solo piano songs on here than on previous albums, but in no way does it come across as "I'm doing solo piano because I haven't got any choice". For one thing, the solo piano songs are uncommonly good, with 'Weatherman' and 'Oysters' being among the very best tracks on the album.

In addition, the album is perfectly capable of sounding rich and full when that is called for. 'Wedding Day' certainly creates the illusion of a whole band playing.

That's about all I have to say about it at the moment. Like all Tori Amos albums, there's a sense that it'll take some time to really delve into all the nuances and know the album as much as I'd like to. That's a large part of why I enjoy her music so much.

Plus, I won't lie: right now I want to get a post or two out of the way here...