The Tori Thread - Page 9

Jesse · 2009.05.25, 05:03 AM

Finally getting around to listening to the album now, just started... I was very disappointed with Welcome to England, but Give sounds great!

merman · 2009.05.25, 09:39 AM

GIVE us your opinion afterwards!
I guess by this point you either like Tori or you don't - or maybe get her or not - and this album probably won't win many new fans over, although I've seen some people (like on last.fm) say otherwise. That is not a bad thing, just goes to show how she really has a "cult following" and does "her thing". I think you've said you're very much an ADP person, Jesse? That's why I want to see how it compares...

madpawn · 2009.05.25, 03:59 PM

Ah, this album's quite good. I much prefer it to her last two, and I don't think it's just the shiny newness of it.

I especially like this version of it, that I created after unchecking the tracks I didn't like so much:

1. Give
2. Strong Black Vine
3. Flavour
4. Maybe California
5. Curtain Call
6. Police Me
7. That Guy
8. Abnormally Attracted to Sin
9. Starling
10. Fast Horse
11. Ophelia
12. Lady In Blue

Now that's a tight album.

(though curtain call and police me are starting to get on my nerves a little bit.)

Give and Lady In Blue and That Guy are just fabulous. Everything else is a bonus. In terms of closers, nothing beats Dragon (probably my favourite/second favourite Tori song ever), but Lady In Blue was astonishing. Gave me honest-to-goodness shivers the first time I heard it.

The cover, unfortunately, is pretty bad.

Jesse · 2009.05.25, 04:57 PM

Originally Posted by merman

GIVE us your opinion afterwards!
I guess by this point you either like Tori or you don't - or maybe get her or not - and this album probably won't win many new fans over, although I've seen some people (like on last.fm) say otherwise. That is not a bad thing, just goes to show how she really has a "cult following" and does "her thing". I think you've said you're very much an ADP person, Jesse? That's why I want to see how it compares...

Yeah, definitely a ADP person, I hardly listen to any songs outside of that album (minus Precious Things and few tracks here and there). I only listened to the album last night without paying too much attention... it sounded not bad. I'm listening to it again now.

I love Give, my type of music. And Welcome to England has grown on me a fair bit actually. From my vague memory of the album, 500 Miles stood out, but I'm not sure why.

Mostly I just wish she would edit her albums down a bit. It took me forever to realize the second half of ADP was actually good, it was just I hardy ever got that far into the album.

(@ madpawn, her covers are all bad)

merman · 2009.05.26, 02:28 PM

She now openly admits she's making "double albums", and that AATS is a double album as well. The reason behind that is that people don't really buy CDs anymore and the market more or less switched to digital downloads, where most people just buy a couple of songs they like most. So it's not really about her inability to edit, she's just adapting to the modern times. On the other hand though, I DO buy CDs and I don't make my own "cuts" of albums, instead I try to listen to an album from start to finish as much as possible. ADP had surprisingly good flow considering its 80 minutes (unlike The Beekeeper which is about as long and the songs don't hang together as well), and AATS is 72 minutes long without the bonus track (75 with that included), which is only a bit longer than Boys for Pele. So we're probably not getting an album that's shorter than that anymore. But I do understand why the length would put people off, I just luckily never really had big issues with that.
BTW, I don't think her covers are bad... I could see your point with ADP and Beekeeper, Strange Little Girls too maybe, but otherwise they go well with the music. BFP and Choirgirl covers are downright iconic to me.

kuro_neko · 2009.05.26, 02:40 PM

do you mean the artwork for the album? I don't thikn the cover is bad at all, not the strongest image by far in the set, but definitely not bad. I don't like the ADP cover very much...TBK was okay, it has Tori actually looking like Tori and not plastic barbie doll Tori. Some of her earlier covers are downright iconic, BFP, FTCG, UtP, etc.

Jesse · 2009.05.30, 02:02 AM

^ I guess we have different tastes then. I guess I take back saying that all her covers are bad, since they're not all bad, but I don't like any of them.

Hmmm... I do like AATS. I like more songs than I expected. Most of the album sounds very dated to me, like it's from the 90s, yet I still enjoy it. It's not exactly a genre I tend to enjoy all that much either, so I'm pleasantly surprised.

Give is still probably my favourite, though I'm very much enjoying Abnormally Attracted to Sin and 500 Miles at the moment.

kuro_neko · 2009.05.30, 06:32 PM

OMG, you think her covers are bad? perhaps you just don't like SLG or the more radically altered ones. Try listening to Thank You on Crucify single or Landslide....

Thank You makes me get teary eyed almost every time I hear it.

I haven't been listening to AATS a lot because I feel like I over-killed it with build-up anticipation. However, when I do listen to it I am constantly surprised at how much I enjoy it despite my initial reaction to stay away from it for the time being. Starling is my clear and current favorite. That bird call loop is just killer

anyone going to the summer lives? I got a ticket to Boston earlier today, I'm off to the side about 10 or so rows back, not too bad although being off to the side might make watching a bit more difficult. Last time I was at a Tori show at this venue I was fifth row center....the venue has gone all commercial whorish now and its impossible to get center first 10 rows without paying out the nose or buddying up to Tori's camp for upgrades.

a_grumble_cake · 2009.06.16, 11:15 AM

wow I somehow managed to forget this thread. oh well.

As for me, the new album is typical later Tori- some good, some bad, some filler. I actually don't like Lady In Blue. It tries too hard to be an epic last song like Yes, Anastasia. I LOVE Strong Black Vine, though. I can't really explain it because I'm not even sure it's a good song.

kuro_neko · 2009.06.16, 01:05 PM

I totally know what you mean about SBV. I can't seem to reconcile that song mostly because I know everything other than her voice was set up and arranged by John Philip Shenale, the guy who does her strings. Just the idea that the overall song was more or less shaped by him kind of turns me off a bit. The album on a whole works pretty well, the only tracks I'm tempted to skip all this time after is WtE and NDT. I understand what you mean with LiB, it is not nearly as epic as Yes, Anastasia, but I don't think she tried to make it more epic necessarily. The band rock out halfway to the end is MUCH better than the first half. Also, LiB becomes a lot more tolerable if you immediately follow it up with Oscar's Theme. There is something about those two back to back that works SO WELL. It almost sounds like LiB leads into Oscar's Theme somehow...

2009.05.25, 05:03 AM	#81
Jesse Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Melbourne Posts: 500	Finally getting around to listening to the album now, just started... I was very disappointed with Welcome to England, but Give sounds great! __________________ Website & Blog \| Last.fm

2009.05.30, 02:02 AM	#87
Jesse Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Melbourne Posts: 500	^ I guess we have different tastes then. I guess I take back saying that all her covers are bad, since they're not all bad, but I don't like any of them. Hmmm... I do like AATS. I like more songs than I expected. Most of the album sounds very dated to me, like it's from the 90s, yet I still enjoy it. It's not exactly a genre I tend to enjoy all that much either, so I'm pleasantly surprised. Give is still probably my favourite, though I'm very much enjoying Abnormally Attracted to Sin and 500 Miles at the moment. __________________ Website & Blog \| Last.fm

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2009.05.25, 09:39 AM	#82
merman Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Bratislava, Slovakia Posts: 561	GIVE us your opinion afterwards! I guess by this point you either like Tori or you don't - or maybe get her or not - and this album probably won't win many new fans over, although I've seen some people (like on last.fm) say otherwise. That is not a bad thing, just goes to show how she really has a "cult following" and does "her thing". I think you've said you're very much an ADP person, Jesse? That's why I want to see how it compares...

2009.05.25, 03:59 PM	#83
madpawn Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Toronto Posts: 154	Ah, this album's quite good. I much prefer it to her last two, and I don't think it's just the shiny newness of it. I especially like this version of it, that I created after unchecking the tracks I didn't like so much: 1. Give 2. Strong Black Vine 3. Flavour 4. Maybe California 5. Curtain Call 6. Police Me 7. That Guy 8. Abnormally Attracted to Sin 9. Starling 10. Fast Horse 11. Ophelia 12. Lady In Blue Now that's a tight album. (though curtain call and police me are starting to get on my nerves a little bit.) Give and Lady In Blue and That Guy are just fabulous. Everything else is a bonus. In terms of closers, nothing beats Dragon (probably my favourite/second favourite Tori song ever), but Lady In Blue was astonishing. Gave me honest-to-goodness shivers the first time I heard it. The cover, unfortunately, is pretty bad.

2009.05.26, 02:28 PM	#85
merman Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Bratislava, Slovakia Posts: 561	She now openly admits she's making "double albums", and that AATS is a double album as well. The reason behind that is that people don't really buy CDs anymore and the market more or less switched to digital downloads, where most people just buy a couple of songs they like most. So it's not really about her inability to edit, she's just adapting to the modern times. On the other hand though, I DO buy CDs and I don't make my own "cuts" of albums, instead I try to listen to an album from start to finish as much as possible. ADP had surprisingly good flow considering its 80 minutes (unlike The Beekeeper which is about as long and the songs don't hang together as well), and AATS is 72 minutes long without the bonus track (75 with that included), which is only a bit longer than Boys for Pele. So we're probably not getting an album that's shorter than that anymore. But I do understand why the length would put people off, I just luckily never really had big issues with that. BTW, I don't think her covers are bad... I could see your point with ADP and Beekeeper, Strange Little Girls too maybe, but otherwise they go well with the music. BFP and Choirgirl covers are downright iconic to me.

2009.05.26, 02:40 PM	#86
kuro_neko Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: World's End Posts: 2,991	do you mean the artwork for the album? I don't thikn the cover is bad at all, not the strongest image by far in the set, but definitely not bad. I don't like the ADP cover very much...TBK was okay, it has Tori actually looking like Tori and not plastic barbie doll Tori. Some of her earlier covers are downright iconic, BFP, FTCG, UtP, etc.

2009.05.30, 06:32 PM	#88
kuro_neko Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: World's End Posts: 2,991	OMG, you think her covers are bad? perhaps you just don't like SLG or the more radically altered ones. Try listening to Thank You on Crucify single or Landslide.... Thank You makes me get teary eyed almost every time I hear it. I haven't been listening to AATS a lot because I feel like I over-killed it with build-up anticipation. However, when I do listen to it I am constantly surprised at how much I enjoy it despite my initial reaction to stay away from it for the time being. Starling is my clear and current favorite. That bird call loop is just killer anyone going to the summer lives? I got a ticket to Boston earlier today, I'm off to the side about 10 or so rows back, not too bad although being off to the side might make watching a bit more difficult. Last time I was at a Tori show at this venue I was fifth row center....the venue has gone all commercial whorish now and its impossible to get center first 10 rows without paying out the nose or buddying up to Tori's camp for upgrades.

2009.06.16, 11:15 AM	#89
a_grumble_cake Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 663	wow I somehow managed to forget this thread. oh well. As for me, the new album is typical later Tori- some good, some bad, some filler. I actually don't like Lady In Blue. It tries too hard to be an epic last song like Yes, Anastasia. I LOVE Strong Black Vine, though. I can't really explain it because I'm not even sure it's a good song.

2009.06.16, 01:05 PM	#90
kuro_neko Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: World's End Posts: 2,991	I totally know what you mean about SBV. I can't seem to reconcile that song mostly because I know everything other than her voice was set up and arranged by John Philip Shenale, the guy who does her strings. Just the idea that the overall song was more or less shaped by him kind of turns me off a bit. The album on a whole works pretty well, the only tracks I'm tempted to skip all this time after is WtE and NDT. I understand what you mean with LiB, it is not nearly as epic as Yes, Anastasia, but I don't think she tried to make it more epic necessarily. The band rock out halfway to the end is MUCH better than the first half. Also, LiB becomes a lot more tolerable if you immediately follow it up with Oscar's Theme. There is something about those two back to back that works SO WELL. It almost sounds like LiB leads into Oscar's Theme somehow...