Shortly before she began work on From the Choirgirl Hotel, Tori Amos suffered a miscarriage.
While she was recording the album, she married her long-term boyfriend.
As expected, both events cryptically wind their way into the album, which arguably has Amos' most personal lyrics since Little Earthquakes.
The surprise is, From the Choirgirl Hotel is considerably more accessible than its immediate predecessor, Boys for Pele.
Tori has opened up her sound by working live with a full band, bringing an immediacy to her sound that has never been heard before.
Added to that are samples and drum loops, ballads supported by eerie, sweeping strings and heavy guitars -- everything she played with on Pele has come to fruition here.
All the while, she's kept the perversely cryptic, convoluted lyrics that have always marked her work, yet the lines that connect have more power and savage wit than ever.
Besides, Amos' songs have an interior logic of their own.
Until now, it seemed that she could only deliver them on her own, supported by her piano, a guitar, or strings.
With From the Choirgirl Hotel, she proves that with a little aural experimentation and muscle, she's as potent and powerful as any modern rock artist.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | SparkTori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 04:14 | 9 MB | 29 MB |
| 2 | CruelTori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 04:07 | 9 MB | 29 MB |
| 3 | Black-Dove (January)Tori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 04:38 | 10 MB | 30 MB |
| 4 | Raspberry SwirlTori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 03:58 | 9 MB | 31 MB |
| 5 | Jackie's StrengthTori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 04:26 | 10 MB | 28 MB |
| 6 | IieeeTori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 04:07 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 7 | Liquid DiamondsTori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 06:21 | 14 MB | 44 MB |
| 8 | She's Your CocaineTori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 03:42 | 8 MB | 25 MB |
| 9 | Northern LadTori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 04:19 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 10 | HotelTori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 05:20 | 12 MB | 36 MB |
| 11 | Playboy MommyTori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 04:08 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 12 | Pandora's AquariumTori Amos | Tori Amos | Play | 04:46 | 10 MB | 26 MB |
| 54 mins | 124 MB | |||||
| 54 mins | 369 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tori Amos | Composer, Guitar, Keyboards, Kurzweil Synthesizer, Mellophonium, Piano, Primary Artist, Producer, Vocals |
| 2 | Jon Astley | Mastering |
| 3 | Stewart Boyle | Guest Artist |
| 4 | Stuart Boyle | Guitar |
| 5 | Steve Caton | Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Mandolin |
| 6 | Matt Chamberlain | Drums, Marimba, Percussion |
| 7 | David Firman | Conductor |
| 8 | Andy Gray | Programming |
| 9 | Mark Hawley | Engineer, Mixing |
| 10 | Martina Hoogland | Photography |
| 11 | Katerina Jebb | Cover Image, Photography |
| 12 | Justin Meldal-Johnsen | Bass |
| 13 | Al Perkins | Pedal Steel |
| 14 | George Porter, Jr. | Bass, Guest Artist |
| 15 | Willy Porter | Guitar |
| 16 | John Philip Shenale | String Arrangements |
| 17 | Marcel VanLimbeek | Engineer, Mixing |
| 18 | Rob Van Tuin | Assistant Engineer, Mixing Assistant |
| 19 | John Witherspoon | Project Director |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |