Tori Amos - "Auditorium Theatre, Chicago IL 4/15/05"
(Sony, 2005) * *
It would appear that the days of the great live album have come and gone.
Our generation has grown up in the era of jam bands, an era in which it is more desirable to be able to have fifty versions of a Phish or Dave Matthews stage show than to hear something like "Live Rust" from Neil Young and Crazy Horse, or "Live at Leeds" from The Who.
Back in 2003 Pearl Jam humped out seventy-two double disc concert recordings. Based on what is available on Tori Amos's "Auditorium Theatre" performance encapsulated herein, as well as the other two disc tapings available only from online retailers, Tori wants to head down that same road.
Don't worry, she's not cashing in -- or so you'll believe if you swallow the explanation given on her official website (www.toriamos.com). Her argument is that fans have been paying too much for terrible bootlegs over the years, which makes her planned six show tour anthology a novel idea.
"Hey," one might say. "I saw that Chicago show, and I want to own it forever, so paying $13.99 for a two disc set seems the perfect plan!" But Amos isn't marketing it like that. Instead, she's hoping that avid fans will buy all six sets, for which she'll reward them with a collector's case and special album art.
Considering that there are few differences in set-lists or in the actual performances themselves from set to set, this comes down to an artist hoping fans will pay $82 for twelve discs when a single comprehensive concert performance might have sufficed.
Considered on its own merits, the Chicago release isn't terrible, though it is far from impressive. Tori Amos has always been an eclectic performer, and her studio albums are a testament to her undeniable creativity and strong song-craft. But this two-hour recording, featuring Tori and her piano alone, grows tedious when listened to in one sitting.
Many of the songs, such as "Space Dog," demand a deeper full-band arrangement. On this release the track is crammed midway through the album and is given a drawn out eight minute performance that sucks all the punch out of the song. And the first disc starts out so slowly it's hard not to fall asleep listening. That's not a good thing coming from what is supposed to have been a supercharged live atmosphere.
That said, there are high notes. Amos's performance of "Mother" -- which was one of the best tracks off her debut Little Earthquakes -- is an absolutely sublime piano-and-vocals track that expands on the original to create an impressive live artifact. And her cover of Jim Croce's "Operator" is proof that Amos is an expert when it comes to breaking down other people's music into its barest elements.
As a "must have" live album, Auditorium Theatre Chicago IL 4/15/05 misses the mark. If you attended the show in April this might be worth buying as a concert memento, but for the rest of us it may be better to let it pass quietly by.
- - - - -
This album and the rest of the Tori Bootleg series is available for purchase at www.toribootlegs.com or through online music distributors including Napster, Real Rhapsody, I-tunes and Wal-Mart Online.
It would appear that the days of the great live album have come and gone.
Our generation has grown up in the era of jam bands, an era in which it is more desirable to be able to have fifty versions of a Phish or Dave Matthews stage show than to hear something like "Live Rust" from Neil Young and Crazy Horse, or "Live at Leeds" from The Who.
Back in 2003 Pearl Jam humped out seventy-two double disc concert recordings. Based on what is available on Tori Amos's "Auditorium Theatre" performance encapsulated herein, as well as the other two disc tapings available only from online retailers, Tori wants to head down that same road.
Don't worry, she's not cashing in -- or so you'll believe if you swallow the explanation given on her official website (www.toriamos.com). Her argument is that fans have been paying too much for terrible bootlegs over the years, which makes her planned six show tour anthology a novel idea.
"Hey," one might say. "I saw that Chicago show, and I want to own it forever, so paying $13.99 for a two disc set seems the perfect plan!" But Amos isn't marketing it like that. Instead, she's hoping that avid fans will buy all six sets, for which she'll reward them with a collector's case and special album art.
Considering that there are few differences in set-lists or in the actual performances themselves from set to set, this comes down to an artist hoping fans will pay $82 for twelve discs when a single comprehensive concert performance might have sufficed.
Considered on its own merits, the Chicago release isn't terrible, though it is far from impressive. Tori Amos has always been an eclectic performer, and her studio albums are a testament to her undeniable creativity and strong song-craft. But this two-hour recording, featuring Tori and her piano alone, grows tedious when listened to in one sitting.
Many of the songs, such as "Space Dog," demand a deeper full-band arrangement. On this release the track is crammed midway through the album and is given a drawn out eight minute performance that sucks all the punch out of the song. And the first disc starts out so slowly it's hard not to fall asleep listening. That's not a good thing coming from what is supposed to have been a supercharged live atmosphere.
That said, there are high notes. Amos's performance of "Mother" -- which was one of the best tracks off her debut Little Earthquakes -- is an absolutely sublime piano-and-vocals track that expands on the original to create an impressive live artifact. And her cover of Jim Croce's "Operator" is proof that Amos is an expert when it comes to breaking down other people's music into its barest elements.
As a "must have" live album, Auditorium Theatre Chicago IL 4/15/05 misses the mark. If you attended the show in April this might be worth buying as a concert memento, but for the rest of us it may be better to let it pass quietly by.
- - - - -
This album and the rest of the Tori Bootleg series is available for purchase at www.toribootlegs.com or through online music distributors including Napster, Real Rhapsody, I-tunes and Wal-Mart Online.
posted by Jonathan Sanders @ 5:30 AM
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