Me, Tori Amos and Bjork

The wonderful Noble Savage left a nice comment on my Confessions post about me and Tori Amos.

It’s a weird thing because Tori is at utter odds with most of my listening but I’ve got almost everything she’s released. The song ‘Playboy Momma’ made me cry when I first heard it and I suspect that album – “Songs From The Choirgirl Motel – is possibly my favourite. Wish she’d edit a bit these days, though.

I’m falling in love – aesthetically – with another female singer more and more these days, though – Bjork and especially “Vespertine”. With Bjork in general and “Vespertine” in particular, I wonder whether it is to do with the lack of the maturity? confidence? courage? to deal with the self-examination and challenge of a powerful woman dealing with complex issues of love, sexual and otherwise. I used to utterly put down Bjork ( “That’s not a tune, it’s a Bjork”) and could be very cutting to people foolish enough to admit liking her music in my presence. Why? I think I was scared of embracing the music of a strong female artist who celebrates her life and psyche so completely and honestly. Tori Amos is no different as a human being, I’m sure, but much of her work chronicles damage and survival. It’s easier on the sense of requiring less emotional work to relate to that if you’re me.

Oh, and if you’re reading this and you remember some bitter little squib sneering because you idly mentioned that Venus As A Boy was a pretty good tune, sorry. I was wrong. Still not too fond of that particular song though.

(from Oxford Circus on my iPhone, hence any typos.)