Thanks for the link, Rob.
Ugh. Looks like 'the woman we call Tori' is still being put on like a costume, then.
What's so annoying about it is that, when she's just being herself, she's unselfconscious, spontaneous, funny, as the journalist says. This is how she used to be all the time, and her music reflected that. It was personal, vivid, full of fire and sparkle and sadness and wisdom. All the things that drew people to her in the first place. Now it's 'the woman we call Tori', a self-conscious creation, who's purpose apparently is to preach a message.
This album has been approached in just the same way as The Beekeeper - music created to preach a message. Not music made for its own sake, because she felt inspired. And what the hell - she's 'going after the 18 year olds'? She wants to 'empower' them? Um ... this is clearly what she meant with that comment at the meet and greet, about the new record 'inspiring generations'. Honest to god, Tori, you need to wake up to yourself. 18 year old girls are not going to give a damn about your new record. They're listening to Justin Timberlake for the most part, and the intelligent ones looking for something more, a role model, are probably listening to PJ Harvey. They don't know who you are, love.
What comes across very clearly here is that Tori herself wants to be 'cool with the kids' again, the way she very briefly was around Pele. She wants that level of mainstream fame, just like I thought. And she apparently can't see that at 43, she's not going to achieve that no matter how much she waters down her music and betrays everything she used to claim was so important to her - her freedom as an artist, her integrity, her musical standards. The kids are not going to care.
All she's achieving with this strategy is to make herself look increasingly desperate and ridiculous to the entire music business and media, even to her own hugely devoted fanbase.
So much for all her talk during TBK project about 'growing old gracefully'.
Ice, you were the one most tender with the rivers.
You, the roof of the waves, layer after layer after layer ...
