TORI AMOS STRANGE LITTLE GIRLS ALBUM ATLANTIC RELEASE: SEPTEMBER 18, 2001 REVIEW: NOVEMBER 30, 2001

"Half the world is dancing to this, oblivious, with blood on their sneekers", Tori Amos reflects over Eminem's song "Bonnie & Clyde" in a recent interview.
"Bonnie & Clyde" is one of the songs interpreted on her new album "Strange Little Girls".
"The scariest thing about it was the recognition that people are getting into the music and grooving along to a song about a man who is butchering his wife. In particular I felt one voice was missing: that of the murdered woman. She had to have a voice."
That viewpoint is the very core of her new album, which is about men's violence and identity. As well as her claim that writers cannot separate themselves from what they create: "Words are powerful; words are like guns!"
It may all sound grave, but it's obvious she had a lot of fun making the album. Slayer, the Stranglers, Depeche Mode, Lou Reed and The Beatles are some of the twelve artists who get their heads severed in an affectionate, intellectual and humorous way.
All the songs on "Strange Little Girls" were written by men, but are performed by Tori Amos from the perspectives of a diverse cast of female characters. Often presented as nerve-jangling stories. The CD inlay includes photos of each woman. The music is preferably acoustic, or laidback orchestrated, with a few exceptions.
"Strange Little Girls" may very well be one of this year's best and most important albums. Pure genius!

ANDERS WIIK

Click to buy this CD directly: