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Music CD - Tori Amos: American Doll Posse
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Music CD: American Doll Posse
Artist: Tori Amos
List Price: $18.97
Our Price: $6.09
Your Save: $ 12.88 ( 68% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Sony
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Tracks:
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1. Yo George
2. Big Wheel
3. Bouncing off Clouds
4. Teenage Hustling
5. Digital Ghost
6. You Can Bring Your Dog
7. Mr. Bad Man
8. Fat Slut
9. Girl Disappearing
10. Secret Spell
11. Devils and Gods
12. Body and Soul
13. Father's Son
14. Programmable Soda
15. Code Red
16. Roosterspur Bridge
17. Beauty of Speed
18. Almost Rosey
19. Velvet Revolution
20. Dark Side of the Sun
21. Posse Bonus
22. Smokey Joe
23. Dragon
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Binding: Audio CD
EAN: 0828768614020
Label: Sony
Manufacturer: Sony
Number Of Discs: 1
Publisher: Sony
Release Date: 2007-05-01
Studio: Sony
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Long and Boring
Comment: I'm a huge Tori fan, and I'm really disheartened to admit that her albums have been in slow decline. American Doll Posse was boring. I thought The Beekeeper was nothing special, and it took me many listens to get into Scarlet's Walks, which I ended up liking - not loving. I think the best thing she has released lately is her best-of albums. There are a few good songs on this recent album: Big Wheel, Bouncing Off Clouds, Digital Ghost.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Something of a return to form
Comment: The first thing you need to know about the concept of "American Doll Posse" is that it's unnecessary in enjoying the music on the record. You needn't bother your mind with silly details that Tori thought were relevant to understanding the album. All you need to know is that Tori is back with her best record since "Boys for Pele", which isn't saying much, considering the fact that "Posse" contains quite a lot of filler. It would be better if she left around seven songs off the record, but it's not such a big deal considering how strong the rest of the material here is.
The album opens with a short, calm, lyrically direct song, "Yo George". Even though Tori is a little late on George W. criticism, it's nice to hear her not swimming in obscurity and trivial lyricism for once. The record continues with "Big Wheel" where she says out and proud that she's an MILF. Ladies and gentlemen, Tori is raising eyebrows again. "Bouncing Off Clouds" falls into the filler category, with its radio-friendly production that ruins quite a lot of "Posse". Things get better in "Teenage Hustling", a song so bad that it's practically good. It's corny, it's embarrassing, it's the most amusing thing that Amos has done in the past eleven years. Tori is insane to the core, but at least it's charming in "You Can Bring Your Dog", which is fun beyond description.
The heart of the record, however, is its true standout--"Father's Son" is not only one of the best songs on "Posse", but also one of the greatest songs Amos has crafted to date. It is lyrically breathtaking and instrumentally, it benefits from its simplicity. "Can you blame nature, if she's had enough of us" is without a doubt one of the most beautiful lyrics Amos has written in a long time. The short pieces ("Programmable Soda", "Velvet Revolution", "Posse Bonus" and "Devils And Gods") are highly satisfying. She's still creating uninspiring songs, but not to the same extent as on her previous records. Still, the filler brings things down--"Digital Ghost", "Girl Disappearing", "Secret Spell", "Code Red" and "Dragon" are all insipid and disappointing. The other bad thing is that her voice has lost a lot of its power--she's pronouncing the words weirdly and it's becoming really annoying.
Overall, "American Doll Posse" is an uneven mix of bad and good songs, but its highs outshine its lows easily. Tori started going downhill with "From The Choirgirl Hotel" and it seemed as if the mediocrity would never come to an end. This is why "Posse" can be considered a triumph. It's a proof that Amos is still capable of impressing the listeners. If you can learn to take the good with the bad, you can grow to like "American Doll Posse". If you can't deal with lengthy records with unusual concepts, it is best avoided.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Different but delightful!
Comment: This is a little unlike Tori's other albums. There's much more percussion in this one. As usual the songs are deep and passionate, and a challenge to figure out, but I absolutely LOVE this cd. She keeps getting more amazing as she ages.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Self-indulgence, your name is Tori.
Comment: I have been a Tori fan since 1992 when I discovered "Little Earthquakes," and I have bought every album she's released since. And sadly, I must ask myself: Where did the Tori Amos I know go?
There are two very good songs on this CD, but mostly it suffers from self-indulgent crap. It seems like the only way to appreciate this album is to do some heavy drugs before giving it a spin, and even then I doubt it would have much value or resonance.
Also, 23 songs on one disk is way too long. Tori dillutes her own messages by throwing as much music on a CD as she can. It's like she's pushing as much as she can at the listener, desperate, hoping something will stick. Tori needs to focus and learn how to edit away the crap, since she won't let another producer produce her albums anymore. Sure, Tori's brilliant, but she's too brilliant for her own good, like Kate Bush and Prince.
If you are just discovering Tori, go with any album she's done except this one and "The Beekeeper." They are pretty bad. Go with "Little Earthquakes," "Boys for Pele," "Under The Pink," or "Scarlet's Walk" -- those are better albums and much more accessible!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Where have all the Tori fans gone?
Comment: I bought this CD on a trip to Washington D.C., so maybe I'm a bit predisposed to think of it as an amazing work of art. Any true Tori fan can remember getting a piece of material that inspired him or her to buy an album of hers in the past. For example, I watched the movie "Higher Learning," and in the score, the beautiful song "butterfly" moved me with its amazing and moody melancholy. I literally watched the same scenes in a very forgettable movie just to hear that song. So, I bought Tori's CDs out of sequence which I know is not at all common for Toriphiles. Surprisingly, I bought "Strange Little Girls first," which honestly, if you're gonna get into Tori, is not the most mainstream or newbie-friendly material she's had to date. But, with time, I kept listening... Somehow Tori's music eats at you slowly. It's sort of like watching a really intense movie and not exactly knowing how you feel about it - which brings me to my favorite CD, Boys for Pele - I hated it! I absolutely loathed that album. I could not, for the life of me, forgive myself for ever purchasing it - but something happened over time and upon repeat listens... Somehow, the amazing lyrics that are so incredibly hard to decipher began to make sense. The idea that her lyrics can be completely obscure is correct, but maybe the obscurity of her lyrics can provide an amazing result for the listener. You can put YOURSELF into her songs. She leaves so much open that you literally can relate to thoughts and words that you would have never put together so delicately on your own. Tori's CDs are not to be interpreted right away, but studied rather - like a really fine wine. Delving into a Tori CD is like reading a really good book. I think some of her former fans who are "throwing their arms up" with the "new" Tori need to understand that he or she may be suffering through the same emotional limitations that her previous works seemed to soothe. My Mom died - I turned to "Horses" and "Winter" and "The Beekeeper." My boyfriend broke up with me - I turned to "Hey Jupiter," "Caught a Lite Sneeze," and "A Sorta Fairytale." The point I'm trying to make is that her new material is not for the masses or hard-core fans - it's for those of us who have matured - just as she has. Emotions change over time, and although we find ourselves reverting to past loves, thoughts, scenes, images, regret, timelines, happiness, unhappiness - we have to remember that all of us change, grow, and eventually move on. Don't move on from Tori, though... just learn to love her in a different way. You know as well as I do that there are no artists in this entire world of overblown pop-induced hype that can hold a candle to Tori's amazing talent. NONE!
As for ADP, take this CD for what it is. Study the CD. Study the mythological influences behind Tori, Pip, Clyde, Santa, and Isabel. Just look at the CD! Tori is standing while holding a chicken and wearing a red wig! In the concert, she wears a sequined pant suit. She is obviously learning to make light of herself... This is her way of healing at this time. All of the pain, sorrow, and frustration that she found herself in during Little Earthquakes, Under the Pink, Boys for Pele, and Choirgirl - she has realized that the extent of her pain was limited to herself - she, the individual going through the torment. What I believe she has realized is that the world is more important - the idea of archetypes, religion, war - how can one limit oneself to be so self-centered. If anything, Tori has rediscovered what she wants her fans to hear! If you've watched YOUTUBE and you see Pip pull out the knife and gun at her show in Chicago while singing a rock version of "Me and a gun," you realize that these alter-egos are helping Tori destroy those figures that caused her pain in the past. To illustrate, while Tori was lying helpless in a car being raped at knifepoint, Pip would have made the guy wish he had never been born! I think you Toriphiles have gotten lazy! You have wanted Tori to release another version of Little Earthquakes, and the reality is that she is not going to! That was her life then. This is her life now! If you choose to walk away after years of being a fan because she hasn't written what you wanted to hear, maybe you should learn to play the piano and write some remake of Little Earthquakes yourself. If you can appreciate a good bottle of Chianti, then buy this CD. Buy all of her CDs, and you would be surprised by how much she really has to say... and how much you really have to learn.
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Editorial Reviews:
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In an era of digital downloads and singles, Tori Amos embraces the concept album in a sprawling 23-song oratorio. Firing across the American psychological, social, and political landscape, she takes on the state of the world, war, and feminism. To help her, she adopts five personas--her American Doll Posse--who take their characteristics from Greek gods, but not their names: Clyde, Pip, Isabel, Santa, and Tori. You need a scorecard to keep track, but don't worry. It's still Tori Amos, bending syllables in improbable pretzels with rippling piano themes and choruses that threaten to go Broadway at any moment. Amos vents her political spleen through "Isabel," leaving no doubt as to her targets on tracks like "Yo George," and comments on our impersonal age and computer addiction with "Digital Ghost." That's sung by the character "Tori," who is reputedly based on Demeter and Dionysus, representing the split between Amos's earth-mother side and her wilder, more libertine tendencies. Anti-war and pro-feminist themes are plastered across American Doll Posse like sloganeering posters. "Dark Side of the Sun" laments both sides of the war, including the Islamists who lay down their lives "for some sick promise of heaven." Amos adopts a big '80s rock sound on many tracks, with guitarist Mac Aladdin pealing off Brian May-style guitar licks over an arena-rock beat. It's where Amos details a more personal sound that American Doll Posse leaves a lasting impression. "Girl Disappearing," sung by "Clyde," holds echoes of the Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby," not only because of the string quartet and nostalgic tone, but the updated tale of a woman losing herself. "Smokey Joe" brims with dark atmospheres, Robert Fripp-like guitar sustains, and Amos's most elaborate vocal arrangements, interweaving two sets of lyrics for "Pip." More than a concept album, American Doll Posse is a convergence experience, mixing online blogs from each character, videos, MySpace sites, and more. --John Diliberto
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