Fiona Apple: Tidal

Of Your Eye Edition

Confession: I bought this first Fiona Apple CD because I thought she was pretty. Well, that and I liked the "Shadowboxer" song they were playing on the radio. The record company thought she was pretty too, I guess, as they made the album cover an extreme close-up of her face, then riddled the CD booklet with more photos of her very model-like visage.

As a girl with a piano and a funny name, she got a lot of comparisons to a certain artist whose last name also starts with "A". This is unfair, as Fiona's songs are quite different. Her husky, dirty voice is much more "come-hither" than "don't try it", though her lyrics tell of a girl who is wary. Fiona was indeed a girl here, while Tori seemed more the woman on her debut, for better or worse. There are hints of lounge, blues, jazz, show-tunes and an homage to Sade, but the similar instrumentation across all the songs and her distinctive voice hold it together. Good job, producer Andrew Slater! Also unlike Tori's albums, Tidal clocks a mere ten songs, which is just enough.

Shandree and I saw Apple in San Diego. She seemed enthusiastic, if a little green. The "finale" saw her dancing around with angel wings strapped to her back and a huge grin on her pretty face. I am less inclined to enjoy Tidal these days, but it's good for a rainy afternoon.