Review: American Doll Posse & Volta

May is turning out to be a truly abundant month! Tori Amos and Bjork released albums within the past two weeks. The last time I was this excited was when Madonna and Kate Bush released albums in the same year (and we all know whose was better, but all hail the Queen of Kabbalah anyhoo!).

American Doll Posse is another long ass CD from The Goddess Amos, and worth almost all the time it takes to listen to. Tori's stomping and rocking and bringing the house down with some of her heaviest outings to date (Big Wheel, Body & Soul, Teenage Hustling). The slower tempo ballads don't water down into AM rock land like they did back on Scarlet's Walk (2002). Vocally she's sounding strong and not playing the same phonetic games she did on The Beekeeper which will make this album a lot more accessible to new fans. Standout tracks: Roosterspur Bridge, Code Red, Dark Side of the Sun and Body & Soul. Don't let the "personalities" Tori puts on scare you away. This album kicks and stirs beyond anything Strange Little Girls had. It's Tori. It's original. And now I will not be able to write my own
songs for at least the next month because I'll be listening to this album over and over and over...
















Volta has our Icelandic Priestess grooving in the digital realm once again. After the strange vocalization that made up Medulla it's good to have her back. Being Bjork, however, these are not your radio friendly boom baps. It's a riotous cacophony of sound. It's urgent. It's jarring. It's scary. And ultimately, rewarding after a few listens. Stand out track: Declare Independence. The lyrics to that song are so right on I may have to get them tattooed on myself!