From: owner-precious-things-digest@smoe.org (precious-things-digest) To: precious-things-digest@smoe.org Subject: precious-things-digest V10 #96 Reply-To: precious-things@smoe.org Sender: owner-precious-things-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-precious-things-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk X-To-Unsubscribe: Send mail to "precious-things-digest-request@smoe.org" X-To-Unsubscribe: with "unsubscribe" as the body. precious-things-digest Thursday, May 12 2005 Volume 10 : Number 096 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Creative Slush ["Jon Haverman" ] beekeeper backlash [wojizzle forizzle ] tori on the late late show tonight [wojizzle forizzle ] Re: beekeeper backlash [pete lambert ] Re: Seattle... Magic Man!!!! [GigDESIREE@aol.com] Tori and The Beekeeper? [Cyndi S Crawford ] RE: Tori and The Beekeeper? ["sweet sangria" ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 11 May 2005 06:19:08 -0400 From: "Jon Haverman" Subject: Creative Slush http://chrisdunmire.com/tidbits/amos/week.shtml ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 May 2005 09:12:59 -0400 From: wojizzle forizzle Subject: beekeeper backlash i've been mulling _the beekeeper_ a lot lately. interestingly, i'm not listening to it that much -- though i like it and have a lot of unformed conflicting thoughts about its themes, the songs, the creation and so forth. but i'm just not drawn to the record for whatever reason. from the looks of things, other people seem to have similar thoughts as well. for instance, the attached essay. personally, i think a lot of the complaints listed below are pretty superficial and "easy" critiques that didn't take much active thought. but it may be a good starting point for me to get my mental ruminations collected. or maybe not. we shall see. anyway, something to read and maybe talk about it if you feel like it. woj An Open Letter to Tori Amos Posted by rohin on May 10, 2005 06:14 PM (See all posts by rohin) Filed under: Music, Music: Alternative Rock, Music: Pop - Scroll down to read comments on this story and/or add one of your own. The Beekeeper Tori Amos Music from Sony Release date: 22 February, 2005 Dear Tori, Ive defended you when few would stand up for The Beekeeper and Ive defended that video you made for Sleeps With Butterflies and I even justified the utter lack of real promotion behind your latest album. But now Ive had it. Tori, doll, you are on probation. When you craft stellar epics like Garlands, only to banish them to the smelly ruins of a tacky bonus DVD, and still leave syrupy radio fodder like Sleeps with Butterflies and Ribbons Undone and the troublingly incomplete Original Sinsuality on the actual album, it makes me wonder. Yet you let this album meander a good half hour longer than it actually should. And you have a god-awful album cover. Just what are you trying to do? Are you intentionally trying to alienate fans? There is a whole army of us who have followed you through Pele and Venus and to Beekeeper and youre not doing what you do best. Youre not making music like you used to. Maybe youre happy. With Mark and Tash, thats fab. Really it is. But it does not excuse overproduction and uninspired instrumentation on your ninth studio recording. What happened to the quirks of Under the Pink or that experimentation of Venus? You have a gift and you have a talent to spread that gift to those who are willing more than willing to appreciate it, so why deprive us? So many of us know that you at your worst are still leagues above 75% of the musicians working in the industry. But, Tori, don't become overconfident now. Your good stuff is the stuff that makes fans nervous in the good way -- giving them chilled seats in the napes of their necks -- songs like iieee and Spark and Blood Roses come to mind -- or even when you're being a mite schmaltzy, but also ironic at the same time -- Tear In Your Hand and Northern Lad come to mind. What about those high-definition power-rock piano chops from Cornflake Girl? Where have all the chords gone, Tori? I could excuse a little homogeneity on 'Scarlet's Walk' because you wanted to take coast to coast across America on that record. Fair enough. But middling piano bridges and Triple A-radio fare on something that is so desperately fierce like 'The Beekeeper' is selling it up the river. The terms of your probation are this: stop overproducing your records, Tori! Tori, Tori, Tori! Your music shines when its dressed down, not when its dressed up in tacky Wal Mart sun frocks from the clearance racks (which is eerily what I imagine when mouthing words along to Sleeps With Butterflies...see what you've done now?) Stop it with the emory boards and let your music have claws again. Age never defies angst. Lovingly yours, Rohin ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 May 2005 09:49:14 -0400 From: wojizzle forizzle Subject: tori on the late late show tonight just a reminder that tori will be craig ferguson's musical guest on the late late show tonight. the program airs on cbs at 12:35am et/pt in most markets but check your local listings just in case (for instance, it's on 30 minutes later here in connecticut for some reason). woj ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 May 2005 16:13:27 +0100 (BST) From: pete lambert Subject: Re: beekeeper backlash wojizzle forizzle wrote: >i've been mulling _the beekeeper_ a lot lately. My first thought (about the 'open letter') has to be "how rude!" My second is, I do kind of agree with the gist. Especially about Garlands. Just not the patronising way it's expressed, though I know its meant with good humour. ( for the record I disagree about SWB strongly - it's much too sophisticated to be dismissed as "radio fodder", if radio happens to like it (does it?) that isn't a bad mark ). We have to remember we are Long Time Fans, dispite the other labels we may use. And one definition of Long Term Fans is "People who think the new stuff isn't as good as the old stuff", whether its wine or a TV series or a novelist, that tends to be a trend, I think. A lot of us loved being shaken and stirred by the rollercoaster rides on older albums, now she's in a smoother zone. And why not be? I've been working on a review of TBK since it came out - Woj you've convinced me to finally finish it asap. But better not do so at work so will have a go later. After I've driven home listening to the version of TBK that's ended up on my walkman (Apollo's Frock is pivotal). Pete change, my dear ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 May 2005 13:23:19 EDT From: GigDESIREE@aol.com Subject: Re: Seattle... Magic Man!!!! Wow! Really... you thought it was that horrible? Where were you located in the venue? I suppose I don't have the advantage of hearing anyone else ever perform there... unless you count Pearl Jam's professional recording that they play on the radio... hmm... interesting. Anyhow, I would still love a recording of this due to the fact that she played Magic Man! If anyone out there knows where/how I can get my hands on a copy, please e-mail me privately. I could do a b&p or I have tons of recordings from '96 and a handful from '92, '94, '98, '99, and '01. I don't have a dvd recorder at this time... but, I could at least send a stereo version of VHS or burn a disc... if I have anything of interest. I'd have to find my catalogs... but, please... let me know how and where I can get my hands on this. Thanks... Desiree ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 May 2005 15:14:34 -0400 From: Cyndi S Crawford Subject: Tori and The Beekeeper? *pokes head out from behind the "Lurker City Limits" sign..* okay, so I read Woj's attachment of Rohin's open letter to Tori.. and that got me thinking. I'm not part of the crowd who feels disappointed with The Beekeeper. quite frankly, I'm very satisfied with it. I don't feel the need to play it over and over rising as much as it did with all her other albums, but I do love every second of it. so.. while I can definitely understand why people are disappointed (particularly when relating it to other musicians that I love or used to love that have "gone downhill" since), I don't quite see how, musically, this album is the same (or very similar for that matter) as Scarlet's Walk. I became a fan in early 2002, so SW was the first album she released with me as a newbie fan. I heard people complaining that it sounded too "generic" and way too radio-friendly. but I liked it. I liked it just as much as I like all her past albums (including YKTR) because it was different. The Beekeeper is different too. SW didn't have any organs on it, the theme is different, and the music certainly is different too. much more different than SW was. SW has a sound that I really enjoy, kind of 70's, kind of not.. slightly folksy, in fact. I had to get used to it because it felt like an extremely different approach than, say, Boys For Pele and To Venus and Back, but once I did, it was all good. besides, people who release albums that sound different every time are my favorite kinds. to me, The Beekeeper feels, literally, like spring is coming after a long hard winter--very welcoming. as for how her music is becoming radio friendly and not as dark as, say, stuff from FTCH, well, she's growing up. she's moving on, and it's about time she did, isn't it? Tori herself said something to the effect of (someone correct me if I'm wrong) "I don't have the youthful rage anymore. I still have rage, but it's not the kind of rage that 20-something girls have." she's moved on from that and I'm loving every second of it. (and I'm only 23.) granted, she may, on her next album or so, pull some more darkness into the music due to the fact that her brother died and she's had to work through it, but in all honesty, I'm thankful that she's not the same girl who probably felt like she HAD to bare every inch of her soul to us when she sang songs like Crucify, Icicle, Putting The Damage On and iieee for the first time. not that I didn't like that--I loved every second of that when I saw and heard it after discovering her. and I'm not saying that she doesn't bare her soul anymore. I'm saying that she no longer needs to (never did, really) bare every last atom of it to us and likely, she knows it by now. and as a final note, has anyone else noticed that a lot of "troubled" (I don't think Tori is that troubled, really.) people seem to find a great sense of happiness when they become parents for the first time? and if they're of the creative sort, they usually take some time out to sing the praises of "wow, having a kid is amazing" in their work. food for thought. what do you guys think of that? Sincerely, Cyndi S. Crawford "I know we're dying / and there's no sign of a parachute / we scream in cathedrals / why can't it be beautiful / why does there gotta be a sacrifice?" -- Tori Amos ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 May 2005 21:27:10 +0000 From: "sweet sangria" Subject: RE: Tori and The Beekeeper? I think you're right Cyndi. :) I, too, am quite happy with the Beekeeper. I think it's a great album to listen to. Tori has matured since Little Earthquakes and who really wants an artist to remain the same year after year? If Tori released albums like Boys for Pele each year, would we buy them every year? It's nice to see artists change. Kristilyn www.kristilynrobertson.com ------------------------------ End of precious-things-digest V10 #96 *************************************