Tori Amos Midwinter Graces

Tori Amos has said that her new album—her 16th—is "about your losses, and how you cope with them." For her, that includes pandemic lockdown and the Capitol riots, as viewed from her remote farm in Cornwall, England. The area inspired her with its ancient mythology, including tales of pixies and giants; the fairytale Jack the Giant Slayer, aka Jack and the Beanstalk, was born of Cornish lore. As always, Amos herself isn't afraid to take on so-called giants. "Devil's Bane" warns of men who would try to control women and has a sort of Led Zeppelin feel, with its witchy guitar and big drums, courtesy of Pearl Jam's Matt Chamberlain (who last worked with Amos on 2009's Midwinter Graces). "Ocean to Ocean" places blame for political insurrection—"There are those who never give a goddamn for anything that they're breaking/ There are those that only give a goddamn for the profit that they're making"—a faint guitar cry like an accusatory echo.

One of the most accomplished and respected artists, songwriters and performers of the last 20 years, Tori Amos' 14th studio album 'Unrepentant Geraldines' is a winner. The album is a return to her core identity as a creator of contemporary songs of exquisite beauty following a series of more classically-inspired and innovative musical projects of the last four years. These have included the seasonal collection "Midwinter Graces", the classically influenced "Night of Hunters", and "Gold Dust", a collection of orchestral reworkings of songs from across her career.

Tori Amos has said that her new album—her 16th—is "about your losses, and how you cope with them." For her, that includes pandemic lockdown and the Capitol riots, as viewed from her remote farm in Cornwall, England. The area inspired her with its ancient mythology, including tales of pixies and giants; the fairytale Jack the Giant Slayer, aka Jack and the Beanstalk, was born of Cornish lore.