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There is an article about Tori's 2002 album Scarlet's Walk in the October 2002 issue of ICE Magazine. (With India.Arie on the cover.) Thanks to Alisha Parker for first emailing me about this.
You can now read part of the article online at the Ice Magazine Web Site. Thanks to Mike Traynor for telling me about this.
Full text of the article
Thanks to Laura Alicia (raspberryspark) for sending this to me.
Amos's America
Revered singer/songwriter Tori Amos finds a new home with Epic after spending her entire 15-year-career on Atlantic. Scarlet's Walk (October 29) marks the occasion and finds the explorative Amos carving yet another unique musical path: this time, offering a historical, cultural, and geographical survey of the U.S.
Amos's 2001 pressing, Strange Little Girls, debuted at #4 on the Billboard chart and comprised transformed- and, in many cases, indistinguishable- re-imaginations of reputed songs ranging from The Beatles' "Happiness Is a Warm Gun" to Eminem's "97' Bonnie & Clyde".
For her ninth disc, Amos turns the focus to America, mapping out a loosely defined character's travels that begin on the West Coast and conclude on the Eastern seaboard, touching on many of the areas in between. Topics range from Native American history to Andrew Jackson to Prince, with a strong September 11 resonance throughout.
The disc also stands as on eof Amos's lengthiest, tickling the 75- minute mark with its 17 original tracks. She tampers with conventional song titling in mnay instances, opting for all-lower case lettering at times. The full track list: "a sorta fairytale", "Amber Waves", "another girl's paradise", "Carbon", "Crazy", "don't make me come to Vegas", "gold dust", "I can't see New York", "mrs. jesus", "pancake", "Scarlet's Walk", "strange", "Taxi Ride", "Virginia", "warmup prayer", "Wednesday" and "your cloud".
"From a commercial standpoint, the music is incredibly accessible- the melody is so there," VP of East Coast Marketing Ceci Kurzman tells ICE. "The unanimously help opinion is that this is one of her most radio-friendly records in quite some time," she adds, hinting that renowned rock station KROQ and even some Top 40 outlets have begun to flight-test "a sorta fairytale".
"Longstanding Tori fans are going to find that this record resembles most of her earlier material", Kurzman says. "Everybody can relate to this music. And still there's this depth and layering her fans have come to love and expect from her."
Amos corralled her regular crew of supporting musicians for the effort, most notably Matt Chamblerlain (David Bowie, Fiona Apple), bassist John Evans and husband/engineer Mark Hawley. Scarlet's Walk was recorded, per usual, at Amos's Martian Studios in Cornwall, England and self-produced.
Writing began immediately after September 11: Amos was in New York at the time, about to embark on her Strange Little Gilrs circuit. "She toured the whole U.S. viewing the country's response," Kurzman recalls. "So it's a very contemporary. But there's an element that is married to history- all wrapped in something that's very easy on the ears."
Perhaps best known for her ability to crafy elementary yet multi-dimensional lyrics, Amos makes no exception here. "We're just/ Imposters/ in this country you know/ So we go along and we said/ we'd fake it/ feel better with/ Oliver Stone/ till I/ almost smacked him," she sings on "a sorta fairytale," the first single.
And, on "I can't see New York": "From here/ no Lines are/ drawn/ From here/ no lands/ are owned/ 13,000 and Holding/ swallowed/ in the purring/ of her Engines/ tracking on the Beacon/ here/ 'is there a Signal/ there/ on the other side'/ on the other side?"
Included in the package is a selection of images and a map that details each song and its relevant geographical location. The limited-edition version houses a DVD- featuring pertinent footage, an interview and still shots of Amos at her Montana photo shoot- assorted keepsakes and other treats.
Moreover, the special-edition disc is equipped with a "connected" option, providing consumers with access to a bustling URL, ScarletsWeb.com. "It's going to be one of the most comprehensive fan sites and interactive playgrounds," continues Kurzman. "You can go again and again, and there'll always be new elements: mini-movies, new tracks, live versions, images and messages from Tori."
After Amos's tour kicks off the second week of November, the site will tie in the singer's journey with Scarlet's. "Where [and when] the two coincide, you've have all sort of assets, whether they be little nuggets from Tori or historical information," reveals Kurzman. "If she's in Dubuque, Iowa, for example, you'll be able to find out her favorite coffee shop there."
Kurt Orzeck
Article Summary
Here are some of the facts revealed by the article:
- Scarlet's Walk is Tori's longest album, with all the tracks totaling roughly 75 minutes in length!
- They give some of the lyrics to I can't see New York:
"from here/no lines are/ drawn/ from here/ no lands/ are owned/ 13000 and holding/ swallowed/ in the purring/ of her engines/ tracking the beacon/ here/ is there a signal/ there/ on the other side/ on the other side?"
- The album includes various images and a map that details each song and "its relevant geographical location."
- The limited edition version of Scarlet's Walk that will also be released with include a DVD with "pertinent footage, an interview and still shots of amos at her montana photo shoot- assorted keepsakes and other treats."
- The CD will be your key to scarletsweb.com, where you can access "mini-movies, new tracks, live versions, images and messages from tori."
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