All Neon Like

Hearing this album again, after several years of not listening to it, its beauty, ingenuity, and impact has not diminished.  Its original release was at a time in my life when I was struggling with my identity and direction, and it provided reassurance that I knew what I liked was ‘me’, and to be confident in my tastes and choices.  It will always remain in my heart.

An album of this length from most other artists, with eighteen tracks, would usually be bloated and struggle to maintain its quality throughout.  That is not the case with this, aided by the fact that there are a few short tracks. 

Beauty Queen / Horses – A great opening track, the sparse, hesitant style of Beauty Queen, followed up by the warm Horses, featuring Tori’s alternating high and deep piano sections.  The decision to put these two songs together is slightly lost on me if I’m honest, as Horses would stand up as a beautiful stand-alone song. 

Blood Roses – An instrument which gives this album a lot of its character, the harpsichord, makes its first appearance in the medieval sounding Blood Roses.  The evocative lyrics, with meaning unknown to me, add to the overall appeal of this song.

Father Lucifer – Tori’s hushed, adorable ‘Hi’s (‘Hey’s / ‘Huh’s?) that open this track, and her layered vocals in the third verse/bridge, are examples of her song craft, and why she is put on a pedestal by so many of her fans.  There is some charming instrumentation in this track:  The moody, throbbing electric bass in the chorus sounding like it’s from a different planet to the sound of the piano, the trumpet in verse two.

Professional Widow – A standout, complex and incredibly produced track.  The clavichord blares out like a 1980s home computer shouting in its own language.  The remix of this song, incredibly only using a tiny segment of the  song, was, criminally, Tori’s only #1 single and misrepresented her music to many non-fans.  However, it exposed her to more people, and if she gained any fans as a result then that’s a good thing.

Mr. Zebra – A lovely one minute song, the brass, piano and Tori’s voice dancing and jousting, with a nursery rhyme feel to some of the lyrics ‘With a Mrs. Crocodile, ‘dile, ‘dile . Just as you start getting into it, it ends, abruptly.  It reminds me a song by Soundgarden ‘Boot Camp’ and one by Pearl Jam ‘Oceans’ from their debut album ‘Ten’.  Both of these are short but incredibly beautiful songs, leaving the listener wanting more.

Marianne –   A weak moment on the album for me, but the track still has beautiful moments, such as when the strings come in at the start of the second part of the song.  The song structure could be described as unusual, with no chorus or repeated verses, but Tori does have other songs like this such as ‘Not The Red Baron’, track 13 on this album.

Caught A Lite Sneeze – As the industrial-like intro kicks things off, and the less harsh harpsichord joins in the rhythmic march, this is a song which I struggle to not move, tap my feet or nod my head to.  Tori’s layered vocals are siren like.  Another standout track.

Muhammed My Friend – Religion, a common subject for Tori’s songs, is the subject matter in this pretty song.  I feel that the lyrics ‘We both know it was a girl back in Bethlehem’ are sung with both a tongue in cheek and wink in the eye.  My dislike for the short saxophone segment towards the end doesn’t ruin the entire song.

Hey Jupiter – As we reach the mid-point of this album, Tori does what she does best with this adorable, beguiling song.

Way Down – Another genius, but short, song.  The choral voices joining Tori in the final section are blissful.

Little Amsterdam – Another weaker track for me, but it’s uptempo, full band, sound provides something different.

Talula – Back to the harpschord for this track.  Its ambition is fully realised with the instrumentation, vocals and differing sections keeping the listener challenged.

Not The Red Baron – For me, another song not living up to the exceptionally high standards that this album sets.

Agent Orange – Another short, charming song. Tori’s vocals are so clever and varied, there is more to delight in the 1:25 here than there are in most songs by other artists.

Doughnut Song – This is the highlight of the album for me.  It is one of my favourite Tori songs overall, not just on this album.  The melody, production and vocal arrangement are pure delight.  When I have been asked, over the years, what my favourite song by Tori is and mentioned this, it has been met with looks of wonderment and confusion.  It’s a shame it is not better know.

In The Springtime Of His Voodoo – As we near the end of the album, this spiky, jazzy song keeps things interesting.  As the harpsichord chimes back in for a short appearance, for the chorus, and section afterwards, you are reminded that this album is a piece of art, with character and heart, and not just a collection of songs.

Putting The Damage On – The warm brass at the start sets the tone for this lovely, enchanting song.  Another standout track.

Twinkle – Rarely on this album, this track features just Tori’s vocal and piano, a sweet, sparse closer to the album providing a peaceful moment to end all of the swirling notions and journeys you have been taken on so far.