Matthew_Star's Full Review: To Venus and Back by Tori Amos
You cannot convince me that Tori Amos is not a genius (in her own Kooky Way.) I was a fan long before all the brouhaha started, and remain one. However, Tori like most geniuses can make the mistake of getting lost inside the labyrinth in her head.
She is clearly making a voyage here, however I feel like I ended up in one of those beat up Jalopie Planes with a couple of caged parrots and a dancing monkey, instead of the first class seat that I had been expecting.
It wasn't an uninteresting trip, but I just didn't make it all the way there on "To Venus and Back".
"To Venus and Back" is a double cd set. One of the cds contains new material, and the other contains live performances of previously released songs. The live cd, "Still Orbiting" is astonishing. Tori is chilling during her performance of "Precious Things", and equally powerful on "Cruel" (which has an unusual twist different from the earlier cd version) and "Cloud on My Tongue" (one of my favorites). "Cooling" one of the rare b-sides is also present here. It is preposterously beautiful. I was pleased with everything here, and it's especially interesting to hear some of the dialogue during the songs. Tori has a definite rapport with her audience!
The cd containing new material, "Orbiting" was rather less pleasing to me.
The opening song "Bliss" seems rather innocuous and bland to me. It seems as if it's trying to get off the ground but can't make up it's mind where it's going. Is this about your dad? A single engine cessna?
There are a few songs on this cd that do take off, such as "Glory of the Eighties", "Spring Haze", "Concertina", and the wistful "1,000 Oceans", but none that seem especially stellar in my mind. Tori does get props for mentioning "that blond chick that sings "Bette Davis Eyes" " in Glory of the Eighties though. I wasn't aware that Kim Carnes was in the process of cloning herself, but somehow it all makes a twisted kind of sense. And, who doesn't want a little dish on Racquel Welsh?? That's right, I know all about the Crystal Light incident, Miss Amos!
Unfortunately, the other songs on the cd are bombs. "Lust" is horrifically abstract and the imagery just doesn't work at all. Lines such as, "hey you gender neutral sifting through the grains of gold" abound. I don't know about you, but I can't say that does much for me!
"Suede" is another nightmare. The music is wretched! It sounds very dated (sort of like a bad Siouxsie and the Banshees take) and works against whatever lyrical content the song might have had...(though I didn't see a lot). "Josephine", which appears to be Tori's homage to Josephine Baker isn't very thrilling either. So, Josephine is still hanging out in Paris, but it doesn't seem as if she's doing much, but telling you "Not Tonight" over and over. Even Tori seems bored with this song by the end.
One of the most ridiculous songs of the bunch is "Datura", which is composed of all of the things that Tori wants to "get out of her garden", including the illustrious Texas Sage! This is a little too self indulgent
Tori!!
All in all, I think that the new cd has some of the most mediocre material that I've ever heard from Tori, and is certainly lacking the passion of her earlier work. The live cd though is the bomb diggity and definitely worth the somewhat inflated price of the package.
Check it out. Just make sure you bring your Astronaut suit and a little extra gas!
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