nlawr54761's Full Review: Boys for Pele by Tori Amos
Boys For Pele marked a big change in Ms. Amos' career and personal life. She broke up with her producer/boyfriend, Eric Rosse, and this was the first time she was producing an album all by herself. She experimented with different instruments such as the harpsichord, harmonium organ, and clavichord, though she still played the piano a lot. Lots of her fans are divided when it comes to this album: some love it and some hate it. By my rating, you can tell which group I'm in. A few days earlier I was in the other group, but the more I listen to it the more I loved it.
Beauty Queen/Horses starts the album. Beauty Queen is just a long interlude with Tori playing the same note and singing some cryptic lyrics. Although I like it, I just want to skip it to get to Horses. That song is a lullaby-like song with the gentle piano and Tori's angelic vocals. I don't know if she's talking about saving somebody or anything similar to that. I do know that it's somewhat related to 'Winter' off of Little Earthquakes with the horses and all. There are parts where the piano doesn't sound like itself cause she put it through a leslie cabinet. It's easy to see why people love this gentle song. On the contrast, Blood Roses is a very harsh song musically & lyrically. It took me a while to like this song cause I already wasn't a fan of the harpsichord before buying this album and this song didn't help, but now I appreciate the harpsichord. Anyway, Tori just goes wild on that instrument and the song sounds like it came straight from medieval times. The lyrics confuse me as I can't tell whether she's talking about a murderous husband (you gave him your blood/ and your warm little diamond/ he likes killing you after you're dead) or a male prostitute (you think I'm a queer/ I think you're a queer/ I think you're a queer/ said I think you're a queer). Occasionally, you hear the harmonium organ (which does not like an organ at all) and church bells in the background giving the song more of that medieval feel. I love it in the middle of the song where Tori belts God knows I know I've thrown away those graces. Overall, once you adjust to this song you'll love it.
Father Lucifer starts with a playful piano and a bass drum in the background, yet in the liner notes it doesn't mention any drums so that's weird. Supposedly this song is about when Tori was high she saw the devil. You hear an electric guitar and a trumpet in the background. At times she sounds a little bit like Kate Bush when her voice gets higher. I love the bridge where her voices overlap and they sound like different people. Professional Widow is another song that took me a while to love with the sharp harpsichords (Note: don't try listening to this song on headphones, it'll only cause you pain). Tori is just shouting the shocking and disturbing lyrics (slag pit/ stag sh*t/ honey bring it close to my lips/ yes/ don't blow those brains yet/ we gotta be big boy/ we gotta be big/ starf*cker just like my daddy/ just like my daddy selling his baby/ just like my daddy/ gonna strike a deal make him feel like a congressman/ it runs in the family). The harpsichord and rockish beat gives the song an angry mood. The song switches it's mood occasionally and I love the end where she shouts give me peace, love, and a hard c*ck.
Mr. Zebra is a fun interlude with the playful piano and swingy horns. The lyrics make absolutely no sense and she pronounces 'zebra' in a funny way. And that's basically it. Marianne was the first song that I really started to like and now it's one of my favs. The song is about a girl Tori knew named Marianne who commited suicide although the first few lines have you confused (tuna/ rubber/ a little blubber in my igloo). The piano is beautiful and the soaring strings add more beauty to this song. I love her vocals because they sound absolutely genuine and full of sadness. Caught A Lite Sneeze was a minor hit off the album and it's not hard to see why. The harpsichord is easy on the ears and it has a great beat. The background vocals are creepy and haunting. When the piano enters, it adds a bit of elegance to it. The lyrics, as usual, confuse me, but the line-didn't think our love was so small- dictates of a relationship crumbling.
Muhammed My Friend begins with a minute long intro of Tori playing the piano. After that, it begins with a catchy piano melody and Tori's calm vocals. The subject matter may offend some people as she says Jesus was a girl. Soon, a smooth bass and the harmonium organ joins along. Her voice gets an octave higher as she sings and Moses I know/ I know you've seen fire/ but you've never seen fire/ until you see Pele blow. After that, a short saxophone solo enters and it adds a jazzy vibe to it. The song easily gets stuck in my head and is one of my favs. Hey Jupiter is one of her most personal ballads ever. The music mainly consist of a piano with the electric guitar and harmonium organ occasionally appearing. The lyrics are more straightforward than the rest of the album as it talks about a breakup. Her vocals are soft and delicate.
Way Down is another interlude that has a bit of gospel influence with the male choir (how ironic since this album is negative towards men). Little Amsterdam is another one of those 'need to grow on you' songs. It starts with a repetitive piano melody and her singing in a deeper range. Although the lyrics have me lost, I think it's about a murder. When the band enters, it gives the song a jazzy vibe. Also I can imagine a stripper stripping to this song. The clavichord appears in this song and it sounds just like the harpsichord except it's a lot more bearable. The song is very drawling which was why I hated it, but now it's nice to relax to. Talula (Tornado Mix) starts off acapella with Tori singing the first verse then the harpsichord plays in the chorus. The song is very upbeat with the frentic harpsichords, mandolins, horns, and percussion. As for the lyrics, they're all over the place. Sometimes it's straightforward (Talula, Talula/ you don't want lose her/ she must be worth losing/ if it is worth something) and other times it's like 'English please?' (and Jamaica/ do you know what I have done/ Mary M weaving on said/ what you want is in the blood senators). I do like the song a lot.
Not The Red Baron is a short song and half of it is just the piano playing. The lyrics make no sense and I'm not even gonna try to understand it. Tori's vocals are very calm and quite nice. The song is pleasant, but nothing really noteworthy. Agent Orange is the last interlude and I really enjoy it cause it's so jazzy and it fits her. I hope Tori does more stuff like this. Doughnut Song is another poignant ballad with some lyrics I can actually understand. The piano, as usual, is wonderful and so is the bass, acoustic guitar, and HA HA guitar. Her vocals are the spotlight in this song as you can tell her emotions are coming through. The lyrics are excellent and, like I said, make sense: and if I'm wasting all your time, this time/ maybe you never learned to take/ and if I'm hanging on to your shade/ I guess I'm way beyond the pale.
In The Springtime Of His Voodoo was at first obnoxious and disturbing with Tori yelping and doing all types of sh*t in the first minute. But now I enjoy this funky/jazzy song with jazzy piano, funky bassline, and percussion. The lyrics, as usual, are cryptic and only hardcore Tori fans can really understand what she's talking about. The harpsichord appears in the chorus adding a medieval vibe to it. Putting The Damage On is a heartbreaking ballad with the excellent horns and piano. The lyrics are very poignant and her voice is full of passion and emotion to the point where it sounds like she might cry any minute. The song is obviously about her breakup with Eric. It's not one of my favs, but it's a great song. Twinkle took the longest for me to like cause it was so goddamn slow. The piano is nice and so are her vocals. It sounds like a lullaby. Eh, what else can I say about this song.
As if the music was weird enough, the pictures are weird too. The cover is kinda creeped me out with her holding a sniper rifle and snakes near her foot. There's the infamous breast feeding a pig picture and her lying on a mattress with cows around her. Also there's one with a piano on fire and Tori has a smirk on her face. Weird, just weird.
This is her least accessible album and it's not a great start if you wanna get familiar with her music. However it's an album that takes a lot a of listens for you to like. I recommend listening to it on headphones, it helps. It grew on me a lot and is now my second fav. Tori album (Choirgirl still remains as my fav).
Great Music To Play While: begging for a hard c*ck, claiming you're not Charlie Brown, wearing your rape hat, watching Pele blow, eating tuna with a rubberband on your wrist in an igloo, sneezing boys out of your nose, eating krispy kreme doughnuts
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