nlawr54761's Full Review: Little Earthquakes by Tori Amos
I've been listening to Tori Amos constantly since December and I'm addicted to her. I just love her unique voice, sensual piano playing, and her lyrics when they make sense. So after two albums that I really enjoyed, I decided to get what people call "her classic". Little Earthquakes was her debut album (yeah yeah I know about Y Kant Tori Read). She started recording this album after the failure of the album I just mentioned. This album is like a diary to her with deep & personal lyrics that are haunting. The music is slightly dated, but it's still beautiful and catchy. But it's not my favorite album from her (that belongs to my beloved From The Choirgirl Hotel).
The album starts with Crucify and it's one of her more known songs. The subject matter is about always crucifying yourself and never feeling like you're good enough. That is something everyone, including me, can relate to. The lyrics kinda captivate how I felt, especially the first lines: every finger in the room is pointing at me/ I wanna spit in their faces then I get afraid of what that could bring. The music itself is pretty catchy with some hard drums, mandolins, and of course her great piano playing. Tori's vocals are great as she constantly changes her octave and I like the way she drawls out the word "chains" in the chorus. Girl is one of the 3 classic songs on this album. She sings of a girl who has been everybody's friend/lover/daughter, but never her own person, which is another subject many people can relate to. The piano is fairly repetitive, but it's very catchy with a nice beat. The synth strings are beautiful, especially in the chorus. The chorus is very catchy and I like the majestic way she sings. My favorite part of the song is when she hauntingly sings and I'm callin my baby, callin my baby, callin my baby, callin.
Silent All These Years is her most known song and I can understand why. She sings of always wanting to speak your mind, but never having the courage to do so. The song is sad and forlorn, but it shows hope. The strings are great, especially in the bridge where it climaxes. It's my least favorite song on the album, though. Precious Things showcases Tori's rock influences. It's about being in the 7th grade and the cruel things you go through in middle school. It has a dark and haunting melody. The guitars & drums are great and give it a rock feel. My favorite part of the song is when she sings with their nine-inch nails and little fascist panties tucked inside the heart of every nice girl and then she manhandles the piano. That part just makes the song.
Winter is another classic song on the album. It talks about her relationship with her father and you can't really tell if it's a positive one or a negative one. The piano gives the song a wintry feel and so does the strings. Tori sings this song with a lot of emotion and those lyrics are just great. Happy Phantom is a jovial song about dying and being a phantom that's happy. It sounds like a song you'd hear at Christmas time. She shows her playfulness in this song, which is overlooked. Surprisingly, this song doesn't sound out of place on this album.
China is a great song using metaphors like 'China' and 'Great Wall' for a distant relationship. The song is very slow, but not in a bad away. This song has the best production on the entire album. Musically, it falls into the range of 'Jackie's Strength' from From The Choirgirl Hotel in that the piano and strings are prominent, but it has a band backing her up. There is a lot of emotion and depth in this song. Leather is a fun song about two lovers in a relationship that have no emotion or feelings for each other, just sex. The piano is played in a cabaret kind of way. It's accompanied by synth strings and a guitar giving the song an extra flare. This song is really starting to grow on me.
Mother is the last classic song on the album. It's just Tori and her piano. The song starts off with a minute of her playing the piano. In this song she sings about her relationship with her mother *no duh*. The lyrics are kinda cryptic and it gives away that she'd write more cryptic songs in the future (tuna rubber, anyone?). The way she sensually plays the piano and her vocals going in different ranges are the reason why I love this song. Tear In Your Hand is the most dated song on the album and it sounds like an 80's ballad. It's still a great song to listen to. She sings about relationship that is now over. The song has some rock influence with the guitars and drums. The song is very catchy and it has you singing along to it.
Me And A Gun is hard to listen to. It's an accapella about her rape that happened during her Y Kant Tori Read days. The lyrics are very personal and you can relate to the part where you think about the simplest things when you're in a dangerous situation. You can hear the pain in her voice, but you can get a sense that she's slowly but surely moving on. This is a song you need to hear for yourself cause I can't really explain it. Little Earthquakes is the last song on the album and it fits there. It's about the smallest things breaking up a relationship. It has a mysterious and dark sound. Much later in the song you hear the background vocals singing give me life, give me pain, give me myself again and Tori goes from singing calmly to screeching like a banshee. It's a good end on a great album.
This is a great album to introduce yourself to Tori. It has some of the most deep and personal lyrics you ever heard. And the music itself is very accessible. I won't call this her classic and say this is my favorite one from her, but this album did start a long career for her.
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