Strange Little Girls (2001) ( )

Tori Amos' voice is amazing and this album is no different. These songs gives us a view at another dimension of her voice. There's always one magic thing that Tori can do to make every album uniquely hers. I think "97 Bonnie & Clyde" is definitely that thing. I don't like the song for the words, but her twist on the music and style of it is where the magic lies. The rest of the album is so great, it makes me want to pull out all of her CDs and keep listening.
 
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Well, I've had this CD for about a month now, and after countless listens I've become even more impressed with it than I was to begin with. I did not like "New Age" when I first heard it, but now I find it somewhat catchy, and somewhat amusingly perverse. "97 Bonnie and Clyde" is the song I only listen to by accident. I've not heard Eminem's version of it, but Tori's is so haunting, difficult to swallow, bitter, raw, desperate, and at the same time so captivating. Someone likened it to "Me and a Gun," which I can understand, although as Tori is a survivor of Rape, she is not a survivor of a murderous ex-husband. I originally thought that the title song "Strange Little Girl" was somewhat pop-esque, I've now discovered a new layer to the lyrics, "she survived but she's feeling old, cause she found all things cold." It really speaks to me, as I've found that life can often make you age before your time. The song "Enjoy the Silence," is a stripped, empty, monotonous wonderment. This one took me awhile, but if you really listen to the words, listen to way the she sings it, you'll get it. I am absolutely in love with the song "I'm Not In Love." People have ripped on this as too creepy, but I see it as the essence of the woman it was originally sung for. This one is also stripped of it's fun, and it's a bit sarcastic, a bit mean, and very realistic. I don't think there's a woman alive who hasn't heard the words: I'm not in love. "Rattlesnakes" is quite breathtaking. I find the lines about a neverborn child and speeding out of boredom to be quite on target. This one Tori could have written, and in a way it reminds me of "Borneo" in that she says "I'll be wearing your tattoo" meaning the guy is already there even though she doesn't want him to be, and in "Rattlesnakes," " a girl needs a gun these days hey on account of those rattlesnakes". "Time" is my most favorite of this album. It makes some cry, it helps others heal. It's beautiful in its minimalism, and really makes you question whether a person can be in love with time itself, or whether it's time that they fall in love. "I Don't Like Mondays" absolutely broke my heart the first time I listened to it, and I still find it emotionally difficult. Think about Columbine and you'll understand. "Happiness Is a Warm Gun" is although long, quite interesting, with great Tori vocals. Reminds me a bit of Yes "Anastasia." "Heart of Gold" reminds me of her live version of *itch. Nuf said. "Raining Blood" is a haunting requiem that is slow, deliberate, and eventually quite thought provoking. "Real Men" is a great ending to the album although it's a bit of a change following "Raining Blood." It'll get you thinking about gender bending, what it means to be a boy, and well, what it means to be a strange little girl.
 
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