you for a while

And there was a good one this week from LiveDaily.com (interviewer Christina Fuoco-Karasinski). In it, Tori Amos admits that she was inspired to begin penning her latest album American Doll Posse after the 2004 election results were in. “That’s what sparked my, um, warrior self, because I didn’t understand where the women were,” she said. She wondered if women were just too busy doing other things, or if they have been brainwashed by the male-dominated political/religious forces that rule the country.

To fight the patriarchy, Tori brought out her dolls. All five of ‘em. The five personas comprising ADP are based on Greek Goddesses–who, when their powers are combined, yield the totality of womanhood: The Creator, the Justice Administrator, the Vixen, the Scared, and the Cruel. That T put a great deal of thought into this concept is evident in the consistent way in which she describes this album, interview after interview. She has studied these characters intricately, she told the interviewer, so its not hard to go out on stage and represent them.

Interestingly, Tori goes and gets a bit political in this interview. When asked her opinion on the upcoming election, Tori admits that she hopes Americans open their ears this time, ask the right questions, and refuse to be distracted from the issues that matter. She cries out for the empowerment of the masses, stating: “The only way to emancipation is to understand what your power is. How can you be empowered and be a powerful woman when you don’t even know what it is?”

The interviewer either did her homework or is a Tori Amos fan herself. She asked Tori if it was true that the box set represented a departure from her old schtuff and the beginning of a new era. Tori said yes, but not without expressing her continued love, respect, and attention to her extensive back catalog. To my knowledge, this is the first time Tori has put this particular spin on the ADP tour; she states that her portrayal of one of the other girls represents her new direction and that the second “Tori” set is meant to highlight her “old” musical self. Tori actually thanks her back catalog for allowing her to have such different experiences on tour: “There are enough that change every night to keep it really fresh.”

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Filed under: Press/Articles on September 20th, 2007