Curiosities In The Courtyard, Tori Amos Album Launch

by | Sep 1, 2017

Tori Amos is on the cusp of releasing her 15th album, Native Invader, and she’s chosen the intimate setting of The Courtyard Theatre in Hoxton, as her launch pad for the record. The venue, a former library and Grade ll listed building, is a hidden gem, tucked away in the Old Street area of London, and the perfect curious location for this beguiling artist.

Native Invader is Tori’s first album for Decca Records. The clues trickling through in anticipation of the release indicate that the material has been inspired by a 2016 trip through her ancestral territory of North Carolina’s Smoky Mountains, as well as the emotional toll of the serious deterioration of her mother’s health and the seismic fallout from the US election.

Tori Amos (Awais Butt)

Tonight’s show is to be the first live public performance of new material. She opens with Reindeer King, a track just recently made public, with its swirly majesty and wintery themes. Wearing glasses and high-heeled sandals and draped in loose, casual layers over jeans, she veers between a relaxed and playful delivery and an intense, fervent manifestation of the lyrics and characters.

Tori moves between a piano and a keyboard, sometimes playing both in the same song or even at the same time. Although we anticipate a straight run through of the new album, she defies protocol and launches into what she describes as “a B-side from a long time ago”, called Ruby Through The Looking Glass. She introduces the song as one written about a difficult time when she was pregnant with her daughter Tash, and how they how they “held it together”.

The second and, it turns out, only other new song revealed tonight, is Breakaway. A tale of betrayal and regret. “You’ve been betrayed. I’ve been played,” she chants. At times she becomes an actress as well as a singer, musician and songwriter, embodying the cries of her characters with a flash of eyes or twisting movements of her body.

Tori Amos (Awais Butt)

From here she guides us back to the familiar tracks Lust, from 1999’s To Venus And Back, and a hypnotic and dramatic rendition of Mother Revolution, from 2005’s The Beekeeper. The echoing piano and incendiary keyboards of this final song lift the vibe to a powerful new summit before she closes the show, encouraging the tightly packed audience to hit the bar.

After the show, she emerges and chats with the crowd. I ask her about the drama of her performance, which was so compelling even for such a short set in a small venue. She smiles at me and says “You just let the song take over!”. I suspect that the new album, when it’s finally more fully revealed in her upcoming tour, will no doubt see both artist and audience taken over by her songs that seemingly have characters and energies all of their own.

Native Invader is out on 8 September.

Tori Amos’s European tour starts on 6 Sept in Ireland and includes shows at The Royal Albert Hall on 4 October, Manchester’s Palace Theatre on 5 October and Glasgow’s O2 Academy on 6 October.

Review by Imelda Michalczyk at Tori Amos Album Launch at Courtyard Theatre on 29th August 2017

Photography by Awais Butt

https://rockshotmagazine.com/28609/joan-osborne-is-tangled-up-in-blue/

The Boojums (Christine Latter)

Nova Scotia Trio The Boojums Announce Debut Album And Release First ‘Single Wings Of Fire’

Nova Scotia rock trio The Boojums have announced details of their self-titled debut album, set for release on 31st October via Having Fun Records, a new imprint of Toronto’s We Are Busy Bodies. The first taste of the record arrives with lead single Wings Of Fire, out now.

Will Linley (Press)

Will Linley Shares New Single ‘Up At Night’ Ahead Of Debut Album ‘Don’t Cry Because It’s Over’

Rising South African singer-songwriter Will Linley has released his brand new single Up At Night, the latest preview of his forthcoming debut album Don’t Cry Because It’s Over, which arrives on 5th September via Island Records.

Andrew Spice (Miss Moço)

Andrew Spice Returns After 22 Years With New Album ‘With Animals’

Canadian singer-songwriter Andrew Spice has released his long-awaited second album With Animals, arriving an astonishing 22 years after his 2002 debut Pretty Demons. While the obvious next step would have been a quick follow-up, life took Spice in a different direction: instead of chasing a music career, he trained and built a practice as a clinical psychologist. Now, more than two decades later, he has found his way back to music with a record that fuses both sides of his journey—artist and healer.

Infinite Coles (Robot Moonjuice)

Infinite Coles Unveils Self-Love Anthem ‘BGM’ With Vibrant Puerto Rico-Shot Visuals

NYC-born singer, performer, and model Infinite Coles returns today with his new single BGM, a soulful, house-infused...
Florence + The Machine (Autumn de Wilde)

Florence + The Machine Announce Sixth Album ‘Everybody Scream’

Florence Welch has never been one to shy away from the visceral, the theatrical, or the spiritual. With the announcement of her sixth studio album, Everybody Scream – out 31st October – she once again invites listeners into a world that feels both intimate and unearthly. The news arrives today with the release of the record’s title track, accompanied by a striking video directed by Autumn de Wilde. IDLES’ Mark Bowen, who also contributed musically to the project, appears in the surreal visual, hinting at the collaborative spirit underpinning the album.

Kanadia (Andy Ford)

Kanadia Unveil Darkly Mesmerising New Single ‘Slide Off The Earth’

Oxford alternative rock outfit Kanadia have shared their brand-new single Slide Off The Earth, the latest glimpse into their forthcoming third album The Fire That’s Tearing Through Our Home, due to drop on 26th September.

Charles Kelley (Press)

Charles Kelley Steps Into Bold New Era With Second Solo Album ‘Songs For A New Moon’

Multi-Platinum singer-songwriter and GRAMMY®-winning artist Charles Kelley – best known as one-third of country trio Lady A – has embarked on what he calls a “bold new creative chapter” with the release of his second solo album, Songs For A New Moon.

The Wild Things (Press)

The Wild Things Unleash Cathartic New Single ‘I Can’t Wait’ And Announce September UK Tour

London-based pop-rock firebrands The Wild Things return with their blistering new single I Can’t Wait, out now, marking the second chapter in the band’s summer-long sonic love story.

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This

Share Thing