TORI AMOS - UNDER THE PINK ALBUM REACTION

[@TheEmpressIsIn]

If you can break free of the need to understand, you can fully immerse yourself in the emotions and imagery of the songs. Tori is writing for your deep mind; often the songs take root and tug at one’s mind. Sometimes they’re just silly and never blossom into deeper meaning. This is music for contemplation and enjoying a moment free from logical constraints and thrilled by the emotion and landscapes of the song. Rather than dismiss, give it a few more whirls. She is challenging on purpose.

[@NathanHautain]

This album focuses on the relationships between women, especially friendship and betrayal. On "God" she asks God why he isn't helping for example when witches are getting burned and asks him if he needs a woman to look after him. "Bells For Her" is presumably about Marianne, a friend of hers who killed herself : on the next album Boys For Pele there's another song about her named "Marianne". "Past The Mission" is about a woman killing a priest who raped several women : in the music video, the women lie down in the street to protest. "The Wrong Band" is about a prostitute getting abused by men, notably the "senator", the "fat man" etc... "The Waitress" is about a woman who pissed Tori off and now she wants to kill her. "Cornflake Girl" is about how some women will betray other women with no remorse : the "cornflake girls" are traitors working for "the man with the golden gun" while the good girls are the "raisin" ones : a story about women mutilating other women's genitalia in Africa gave her the idea. "Icicle" is about her masturbating in her room while her father, a minister, was giving sermons downstairs. "Yes, Anastasia" talks about a hypothetical scenario in which the daughter of tsar Nicolas II, who was killed during the Russian revolution of 1917, survives and runs away : "We'll see how fast you'll be running". Hope this helps !

[@lutalice]

Bells for her is about her best friend Beanie, who also inspired Cornflake girl, Carbon, Raspberry swirl and countless others x

[@neilbaldwin1492]

wait, Bells for her is about Marianne? makes sense, I just never put that together.

[@NathanHautain]

@@neilbaldwin1492 That's my interpretation but of course there are other possibilities

[@coolhamid1]

Yay, more Tori! For sure, on a first listen the second part of the album's definitely an obtuse listen, but the melodies really carry the songs with repeat listens. And, uh, maybe brace yourself for the next one, which is easily Tori's weirdest album and one of the more out there records to chart as high as it did. BUT it's also the best album to a lot of fans. I recommend going into it wanting to be surprised and that part of the fun is how labyrinthine and alice-in-wonderland-logic the whole album has. Not an easy album, but worth diving into! And she gets much more straightforward from then on, I'd say. Pretty sure you'll love From the Choirgirl Hotel, most people do!

[@NathanHautain]

Hey ben ! You should really consider checking out Liz Phair, especially her first 3 albums, Exile In Guyville (1993), Whip-Smart (1994) and Whitechocolatespaceegg (1998). She's an indie-rock princess and a great guitar player ! Also, love the Tori videos, they're always a treat

[@lutalice]

There’s not a single Tori album I liked on the first listen lol... mind you, I consider every album she made up to (and including) Scarlet’s Walk a masterpiece! But I needed time to absorb each one. I couldn’t stand to listen to Boys For Pele in the beginning, but within about a year, it became my favourite album of all time! So don’t let your first impression of ANY Tori song deter you; when it comes to Ms Amos, you gotta invest the time in allowing the songs to reveal themselves, sometimes slowly. But, my God, the payoff is sooo worth it! I’m hoping that’s where your musical journey takes you. Listening to Tori changes the way you listen to music. Maybe someday you’ll come to know what I mean by that!

[@bobwise1977]

I was the same. I didn't like the first few albums on first listen. I clicked with little earthquakes when under the pink came out. I didn't like under the pink until boys for Pele came out. She just took some time to digest

[@lutalice]

Cloud on my Tongue is about a guy with a magnetic energy and she's drawn to his allure, his "heat" (or as she puts it, his "Borneo")... But she's conflicted because she knows he's not the type to stay committed to one person ("hard to hide a hundred girls in your hair") and that plays into her insecurities ("my ugly one") and certain issues she thought she had resolved ("thought I was over the bridge now") are still playing out in her relationships with men (circles and circles again), i.e. the way she is drawn to their "fire" (she fully explores this theme on her next album). In the end she says "you can go now" but "leave me with your Borneo" - basically, she finds it in herself to let him, the man himself, go, but she still craves the fire that men have, that keeps drawing her in because she's so addicted to it. The implication is she needs to find it within herself - and that is the overarching theme of Boys For Pele, which comes two years later. Side note: the guy in the song is actually Anthony Kiedes of the Chili Peppers! He was pursuing her like crazy when she first exploded onto the alternative scene, and she admits she was intrigued but hesitant, which is basically the perspective Cloud is written from!

[@gregwiles3296]

I love your interpretation/understanding of this song. Especially the part about circles and circles, got to stop spinning.... in reference to cycles that keep repeating in relationships. And, It's interesting that Anthony Kiedes was in that video.

[@neilbaldwin1492]

what a beautiful explanation.

[@lutalice]

@@neilbaldwin1492 aww thank you 😘

[@chrisv.h.2307]

So excited for your reaction! I think of Under the Pink as an impressionist album-- the meanings of the lyrics are often fuzzy, but the emotion in the music feels more real than most pop songs anyway. "Cornflake Girl" has my favorite Tori piano work. I totally slept on "Past the Mission" until I started listening to it as a revenge track against a local abusive priest (didn't get that until the music video). "Pretty Good Year" is an underrated beauty. That said, it's thirty years later and some of these tracks still haven't really clicked with me, especially the second half. I hope you enjoy! Her next album is WAYYY out there but so much fun.

[@robbiereacts22]

This album was everything to me when I was in high school. Tori’s albums get more experimental as you keep going. She starts playing different synths and stuff. Choirgirl Hotel is incredible.

[@daipearmain]

Arguably the favourite and infamous song from "Under The Pink" is the song "Honey" which was kicked off the album last minute and replaced with "The Wrong Band." As Tori describes it, she listened to someone she shouldn't have. Maybe it won't have been so big if such a strong and beautiful song hadn't been relegated to a b-side, but it's worth checking out. Two other b-sides I feel should have been on the album as well, "Sister Janet" and Daisy Dead Petals"

[@Pfink]

When I first got into Tori's music, the second half of Under the Pink was hard for me to, especially because I thought the impressionistic piano pieces were too similar. To this day I'm not the biggest fan of Icicle (it's a fan favourite), but I grew to love everything else. I think Cloud on my Tongue is utterly moving once it clicks, and Space Dog became one of my all time favourites after I heard the version she included on her live album. Her lyrics can be really obtuse and abstract, and her explanations of the songs make them even more confusing sometimes, but I guess if you can relate to them in your own way, even if you can't be sure of the "real" meaning, the goal is achieved. Just enjoy the music, and hers is really powerful.

[@Chungalhunga]

Yeah, Space Dog is a great song, i think entire album is nade so well she had troubles making another on the same level that would also sell well. I'm very grateful to our studio drummer who told me about Tori not long after the album came out. How do you like her other albums? I'm very surprised they are so well received within the LGBT community, knowing why would be interesting because he is also known for great production, sound, etc.

[@04jhowarth]

Just wait until the next album, Boys For Pele 👀

[@bennshouts]

😱😱

[@jessicahimmel7867]

The best ❤

[@sidhedanu]

As a 30 year fan, I have a few differences of opinion with one of the other comments regarding song meanings. I used to read & listen to EVERY interview, because Tori's personality is just as intriguing as her music. I just love her voice-it's cadence, softness, & her vivid storytelling. I have also listened to an interview with Beenie recorded shortly before her passing a few years ago (on the Drive All Night podcast). Anyway, about the songs, it's first important to know a couple of the folks mentioned, either by name or alluded to. Beenie: one of Tori's best friends The man with the golden gun: Beenie's boyfriend, a shaman Pretty Good Year - She got a fan letter from Greg & I guess he was being a bit whiny about his life. She wasn't very sympathetic. God - She's a preacher's daughter & she was working through some shit. Bells for Her - Not a written song. She sat down at a prepared upright piano & just started playing & singing, like you do. Luckily Eric (boyfriend & engineer at the time) had hit the record button. She was sad because Beenie had withdrawn from their friendship & was in a bad relationship. The man with the golden gun from Cornflake Girl. Thanfully, Beenie only withdrew because she was focusing her energy on extracting herself from that relationship. Past the Mission (her words) "Past the Mission" is about a girl who refuses to be a victim anymore. But she has to face a lot of thought patterns to do that. I wrote this when I was reading the book Holy Blood, Holy Grail. It talks about different theories on Christ. It talks a lot about Mary Magdalene. It's an underlying theme about how the church, the mission, has suppressed all this truth down through the years -- the Goddess energy. They refer to Mary Magdalene as the Black Madonna. She had this cult following in France. They believe that she came to the shores pregnant. When they say the Holy Grail, they mean the Holy Blood, the Blood Royal in her body, Jesus' baby. And some scholars believe this. The other parts don't necessarily ring right, but there have been these secret societies. That's what I'm talking about also in "Space Dog." There are loads of secret societies, this is only one of them. [Really Deep Thoughts - Winter 1995] I always loved what he did, so "Past the Mission" said to me, "I want Trent [Reznor] to sing on me." And I said, "I'm sure you do." And, so, I made the call, and he was, uh, "open to that." And we, uh, did it at his house, you know, the old Tate House... [CFNY - Fall 1995] Baker Baker Simple enough. She felt she wasn't open enough in her relationship. The Wrong Band This one is about the Heidi Fleiss scandal. Tori was friends with her. The Waitress Tori, as a customer, had a bad experience with a waitress that sparked her inner rage. She just wanted to explore that idea. There is a nearly 10 minute long version of this song from a filmed performance in 1998 that blows my mind every time. It's not fucking long enough. Cornflake Girl This was inspired by Alice Walker's book on female circumcision, Posessing the Secret of Joy. The theme is women betraying other women. Cornflake girls aren't loyal, raisin girls are. Icicle The opening piano line hasn't been repeated live - it was just a warm up. Same thing happened with Yes, Anastasia. She's talking here about exploring her sexuality as a young girl while the family is celebrating Easter. The monster is her grandmother. Cloud on my Tongue So um, this is a bit of a strange story. Um... I was in a strange place in the Pacific and this um, guy, showed up. This was many, many, many, many, many years ago. And he said to me, "I've just come from Borneo, and I've come to take you away with me for a few days." And I said, "Well, that's just fucking great, because my boyfriend's here, and you know I have a boyfriend and you had a chance with me a few years back." And isn't that always the way that they come... [Atlanta, GA concert - August 21, 1999] Space Dog Yeah, this one is weird & I LOVE IT. I wrote this record in New Mexico and there was this drawing on the mud wall where we were staying. And it was of this, I thought it was a dog anyway. And I would look at this dog all the time and I thought it was saying stuff to me. I got on a plane to go to Chicago... and you know, most people think that I'm nuts. But the truth is, these things just like happen to me, I don't like dream them up. I was busy reading a romance novel, I was way more interested in what was going on in my book. And all of a sudden I hear this voice. It's this dog talking to me. And it goes, "Tori, check out the guy in Chicago." I said, "What guy in Chicago?" "Listen to that kid down there." I'm like, "Huh?" And I'm like listening, right. And I hear this guy thinking, I hear him going, "I am not sitting here with these people. They are not my parents. I'm like, totally grossed out by these people," and was like, talking into his peas. And he's going, you know, "Get me outta here, get me outta here, these people belong on Oprah Winfrey." And um, he's like, "Lemon pie, do you read me, do you read me?" And I'm like, "I read you, buddy." [Maastricht, Holland (concert) - May 7, 1994] Yes, Anastasia My history teacher claimed to have dined with the woman who said she was Anastasia. He thought her table manners didn't reflect a royal upbringing. I have no opinion. It's a journey. Anastasia Romanov... it's not like I've read loads of books on her. I was aware of the family and that's about it. So I'm in Virginia, and I had crabs... [laughs] I keep saying that! I had crab sickness, I had eaten bad crabs in Maryland! But I couldn't cancel the show. I was at soundcheck, and needless to say, when you are very, very ill, it is easier to communicate with your source... you are fragile and vulnerable. Well, her presence came. Now I have only heard of her in history, I've got no point to make. She comes and goes, "You've got to write my tune." I go, "Ohhh, now's not really a good time." She says, "No, you've got to understand something from this, there's something here that you've got to come to terms with." And that night came, [sings] "We'll see how brave you are," and that was really about the whole record. That came just about before everything. And whenever I sing that chorus, "We'll see how brave you are," it means so many different things to me. It's part of my self, my spirit self saying to the rest of myself, "If you really want a challenge, just deal with yourself." The funny thing is that Anna Anderson, who claimed to be Anastasia, died very close to where I was playing, an hour or so from there in the 80s. The feeling I got that Anna Anderson was Anastasia Romanov. She always tried to prove it and a lot of people believed her and some people didn't want to believe her, because of what that would have meant. And again, it's really working through being a victim. "Counting the tears from ten thousand men, and gathered them all, but my feet are slipping." You can't blame the men anymore; there's always you. It comes back to us; it comes back to me. [B-Side - April/May 1994]

[@highheartwellness]

Love your reactions, and your honesty. Glad you're back to doing Tori albums.... but, it seems like you got too in your head during this one. I remember not connecting with all the songs on this album when I first listened though, so I get where you're coming from. That said Space Dog became my favorite Tori song, so it's a bit weird seeing someone who appreciates Tori not enjoy that song. But everyone's different. Maybe listen to each of the songs at separate times if you do decide to re-listen. You gotta FEEL a song like Space Dog. Still, to this day, I don't connect to all the lyrics, ha

[@dustinhall669]

Tori Amos changed my life.

[@undrentide1972]

You’re in for a treat with the white heat of Boys for Pele, it’s by no means an easy or comfortable listen but it’s absolutely essential.. i still don’t think there an album to this day that has catalogued emotional devastation so precisely despite the oblique lyrics. Under the Pink was such a brilliant album, it was completely misrepresented by the single cornflake girl which as you know sounds jaunty and upbeat but is actually about female genital mutilation and violence perpetrated by women against other women. Tori certainly didn’t shy away from sensitive subjects on this album.. as it’s probably been pointed out Trent Reznor of NIN provided bvs on Past the Mission.

[@juliaschulze290]

if you love the music itself, then pleeeeaaase give Toris songs many, many more listenings. The most fascinating thing about her work truely is, that you will get the meaning of a song when it is the right time for you. And then it blows you away and makes you feel understood in a very special way.

[@almandragoran]

It seems to me that you’re sort of bumping on the more classical side of Tori’s music. Tori started out playing classical music at the Peabody Conservatory from age 5 (training to become a concert pianist), so that influence is deeply rooted in her, and Under the Pink is probably the regular album where it comes out the most. Some fans love her more contemporary sense of melody and songwriting, while other fans really love the more classical and esoteric side of her composing. I would say the second half of her career (pretty much from From the Choirgirl Hotel (1998) and forward) has been much more contemporary, with some exceptions. Under the Pink and the next album, Boys for Pele, is her most challenging works by far. I also think it’s a fools errand to try to find clear meaning in most of Tori’s songs. She comes up with amazing lines, but she relies a lot on imagery and metaphors, and she rarely explain her songs in interviews. If you have listened to her a lot and read a lot of her interviews and her two books, several recurring themes and interests become obvious and some of the songs become a bit more understandable, but she rarely writes straight narratives in her lyrics. When she talked about Under the Pink in the press when it came out she said that the album was about women and the ways women treat each other and others. It’s not in every song, but if you view it from that point of view some of it becomes clearer. Female friendship in Bells for Her (about her best friend Beenie who was in a bad relationship that Tori couldn’t do anything about), female violence/anger in The Waitress, women betraying women in Cornflake Girl (inspired by a book about female genital mutilation and how its often perpetuated by mothers and grandmothers). Past the Mission is about sexual violence against women, Baker Baker is about how women (Tori specifically) can be emotionally unavailable too; and Icicle is about finding your sexuality as a young woman in a very religious home. Some songs are more specific - The Wrong Band is about a prostitute Tori knew in DC who had to leave the country because she got involved with a politician; Pretty Good Year was inspired by a young man (Greg) who wrote a fan letter to Tori where he said that he felt his life was over at 23; and Yes Anastasia is about Anastasia Romanov’s, the youngest daughter of the last Tsar of Russia, who some believed survived the execution of the Tsar family in 1918. The story became so famous that several women claimed to be Anastasia in the mid-20th century, and a big Hollywood movie was made about her in the ‘50s. Nobody knows what Space Dog is about, probably not even Tori. It’s all vibes.

[@wagnercorrea_]

I looooove this album!!!!

[@ValdesCollao]

Hi Ben! This was my firts Tori álbum… so in love with this kind music when a was young ❤ in 1995 i’ve gotten 3 álbums from 3 diferents artists that shape my taste in music; Bedtime Stories by Madonna, Post by Bjork and Under the Pink by Tori Amos ❤❤❤ So, imagine been a 14 years old boy from latín América, trying to figure out whats the meaning of her songs 😅😅😅 but I really love her voice and the way she delivered every song. some how, I undertand what's she is saying... and the way she played the piano it just magical. thank you for this reaction, you look so handsome when lisented the music that i love! ❤

[@sillywhale]

I don’t think you’ll like Boys for Pele. It’s very long, much weirder and harder to understand. However, I think you’ll really like From the Choirgirl Hotel. It’s much more accessible musically and lyrically, and more experimental. Tori gets a band and goes dark lol

[@bennshouts]

Oooo, goes dark sounds exciting!

[@Pfink]

Boys for Pele is definitely more obscure lyrically, but I think it's pretty accessible. My goth teenage self absorbed it more easily than it did Under the Pink. It's a rock chick record, just with harpsichords instead of guitars. :P

[@MrDemimonde]

I cant wait to see your reaction to Boys for Pele 😅😅😂

[@bennshouts]

HAHA should I be scared?!

[@RPMir]

This album is sort of like a surrealist painting. Impressions and dreams and metaphors. It's such a gem. Thanks for this reaction!

[@bennshouts]

I like this take! Thank you!!

[@nick_bluejeanblue]

YES! i haven’t even watched yet and i’m so excited for a tori reaction! if you haven’t yet, please consider checking out choirgirl hotel (another tori album)!

[@PaniPunia]

Well, I can't translate Tori to human, but 'Icicle' is about self pleasure. She confirmed in interviewes. Can confirm, it fits.

[@RPMir]

Baker Baker still kills me every time.

[@bennshouts]

😭

[@bobwise1977]

My favourite Tori song is bells for her. Im not sure of the meaning, but i think it is about a friend, who she is watching wither before her eyes in a toxic relationship. Its interesting that you thought icicle was boring, when the song itself is about masturbation lol. Another greay reaction, although Tori albums do take a few listens to get. The forst play of them is always a bit jarring and surreal.

[@openyourchakras918]

I just want to know what happened in your life at this time of the recording. You are definitely being affected by whatever is spinning in circles within your mind on this day!! Please don’t analyze her lyrics anymore until Scarlet’s Walk

[@rsngrl]

interesting to watch Icicle go right over your head, lol! also, the piano interludes are what many Tori fans go crazy for, personally speaking of course. enjoy the journey!

[@bennshouts]

Haha, classic me I suppose

[@benjaminlaw1819]

Bells for her is my fav b/c I've never heard a song that I've related to where you knew someone who ended up getting toxic partner & they're not the same person you once knew. When you try to reach out to that person and tell them them, but they choose not to listen to you. It's makes me sad but this song makes feel less alone feeling that way. Tori is one of those artists who doesn't shy away from singing about dark subject matter.

[@timothytaylor9153]

It’s difficult to enjoy the reaction because you’re so fixated on immediate gratification of a clear meaning and a short run time.

[@bennshouts]

And yet I literally say the first half should have been longer?…

[@juliaschulze290]

It can take years to get into an album or a certain song. It is always worth the effort or wait.

[@tntbsyht]

I hope you go down a PJ Harvey rabbit hole next now you’re getting into the alt gurlies of the 90s.

[@DavidMichaelCommer]

Almost all of Tori's albums after Little Earthquakes have songs with very cryptic lyrics. I thought for some time that many were really gibberish words meant to convey a mood rather than any specific meaning and I realized gradually over many years that her lyrics all hold specific meaning. The challenge, and the problem for first-time listeners, is that many of those specific meanings are specific to her life and can't be known without knowing Tori Amos intimately through interviews and some writings. Still, the songs can be enjoyed for their musicality, for lyrical interpretations that any listener can ascribe to them, and as puzzles to be solved. Of course, not everyone is interested in doing any kind of work to enjoy music. But Tori's music really is much more akin to literature than it is to pop music, and those of us who have become capivated enough with her work to investigate her lyrics' meanings almost invariably regard her as a genius. Her next album, Boys for Pele, is even more cryptic and many times weirder. But the albums that follow are much more straightforward and less bizarre.

[@melissaholmes1052]

God was my song in Catholic boarding school. Still to this day as a kid of a religious family 😊

[@joshuayeager3686]

Under The Pink still goes down as my favorite Tori album but it’s the closest to me.

[@sirex02]

UTP is like the musical equivalent of an impressionist painting. Thirty years later i still hear and feel new things when I listen. Even the masturabation laden Icicle is steep in meaning.

[@sillywhale]

The guy singing on Past The Mission is Trent Reznor. There’s been a rumor amongst Toriphiles that Trent and Tori dated briefly and Courtney Love sabotaged the relationship. 😅

[@bennshouts]

Omg hahaha classic

[@openyourchakras918]

Love your reactions but this Tori album needs a quick second run through with vibing and NO ANALYZING LYRICS!!!! Please record a second chance reaction with vibing and absorbing her emotion!! This was the first album I bought and I ended up in love and made me understand her poetry much later when analyzed. You were way off on energy and vibing on this album!! You seriously did not get the experience MEANT WITH THIS ALBUM, YOU SAID YOU WOULD VIBE THE REST OF THE ALBUM YET YOU DIDN’T 🤦‍♂️ YOU are so much BETTER than this reaction 💗 💫

[@gigiloveyeah]

I hope you give let go b sides a chance I can’t give you a link to the ones that didn’t make the 20th anniversary

[@stefanrw]

It's literally pointless trying to work out what Tori is singing about a lot of the time - 'Cornflake Girl' is about FGM (she's said that in interviews, so we know that at least haha). I like you but no song on this album is boring! I've been a fan since I was 15 so over 20 years. However, I haven't really listened to any of her albums after 'Scarlet's Walk' x

[@neilbaldwin1492]

yes, Anastasia is probably my favorite Tori song. Sad that you didn't appreciate it.

[@prbsnoop1974]

Baker Baker is about trying to be in a relationship after her rape ordeal that she sang about in Me & A Gun

[@bennshouts]

😭

[@gigiloveyeah]

I can you give a link to the let go b sides there a lot ❤

[@openyourchakras918]

Your vibe was off, don’t read the lyrics with the first listen. Tori delivers with the emotion you need to feel & you will get what the song is about (for you specifically 😉 she does brilliance with this way of delivering emotion)

[@TheEmpressIsIn]

Oh and a cornflake girl is a woman that ‘serially’ undermines other women. This was slang Tori and her stylist concocted. Possibly also inspired by the Cornflakes commercial she booked over Sarah Jessica Parker.

[@gigiloveyeah]

We need Ashley Tisdale album reactions ❤

[@gigiloveyeah]

I hope you give Ashely Tisdale albums a chance ❤