News: News-Press Concert Review (November 18, 2007)

Charles Runnells offers up his opinion of last night’s show at the Mann Performing Arts Center in Fort Myers for The News-Press. The review was posted on their entiertainment website, Gulf Coasting Live on November 18th.

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Nothing better than the real Tori Amos

Review of her concert at Barbara B. Mann
by charles runnells
crunnells@news-press.com

11/18/2007

I couldn’t believe it. I adore Tori Amos, but somehow I didn’t care much for Isabel, her opening act in Fort Myers Saturday night.

So why was I so surprised? Here’s why: Isabel and Amos are the same person.

Just with different hair, clothes and attitude.

It’s all part of Amos’ “American Doll Posse” experiment, where she recorded an entire rock album using four different personaes, each based on a Greek goddess.

Isabel is the cigarette-puffing, camera-toting journalist who sings the anti-Bush tune, “Yo, George.”

And, well, she’s kind of dull.

The whole “posse” idea is interesting, of course. For each concert, Amos performs as one of those characters before the real Tori comes on. But in reality, the cooler-than-you Isabel only dampened Tori’s usual effervescence.

Sure, it was fun to see Tori come out in her blonde wig and puff a cigarette. I appreciate the drama. But then she turned in lukewarm performances of “Yo, George, “Sweet Dreams” and a few other songs.

Thankfully, Isabel left the stage after 30 minutes and the real Tori changed costumes and came back to make everything better.

This was the Tori her fans (myself included) have grown to love: all sass and fire as she writhed on her piano bench and did a few goofy dances (for example, she mimed driving a car as she swayed to the band’s beat. She even mimed a right turn. It’s one of the silliest things I’ve ever seen someone do on stage, and I love her for it).

This was Tori the superstar, not “Isabel” the make-believe goddess. This Tori wore a sparkly body suit. This Tori played the hits. This Tori rocked the house.

The Cult of Tori was out in force Saturday night. Mann Hall was probably only about 3/4 full, but Tori’s posse more than made up for that shortage.

The female fans were the most vocal, hooting and laughing and hollering “We love you, Tori!”

In response, Amos shimmied and vamped and pounded the heck out of her piano and keyboards (sometimes playing both at once. Very cool).

Amos still has one annoying concert quirk: She often changes familiar songs, slowing down certain phrases or putting on weird voices at crucial points.

I love it when musicians give us dramatically different versions of their time-worn songs, but it really should make the song better. With Tori, some of these changes are vigorous improvements, but many just throw the songs out of whack (exhibit A: “Silent All These Years” with its stalling chorus).

That being said, Amos remained at the top of her form as she cooed and hiccuped through irreverent, often funny songs about God and sex: the boisterous “Big Wheel” with its MILF breakdown (“I am an M-I-L-F, don’t you forget”), the lilting “Tears in Your Hand”, the pounding “Cornflake Girl,” the dreamy “Glory of the 80s.”

The audience must have liked what they heard.

Right before the first encore, at least 100 fans rushed the front of the stage to dance and record their rock goddess with their camera-phones. And in appreciation, the impish Amos ended up giving Fort Myers TWO encores, ending everything with rousing versions of “Bouncing Off Clouds” and “Hey Jupiter” (including the hoo-ooo-ooo chorus that always reminds me of the end of the song “Purple Rain.”)

So I forgive Isabel for putting on only a so-so show (and by the way, the real opening act was amazing: a New York singer-songwriter named Yoav who plays a hypnotic, percussive acoustic guitar run through various effects pedals).

Of course, it’s no wonder Isabel couldn’t match the sturm and drang in Amos’ performance. Isabel’s online bio says she’s 88 years old, but really she only dates back to about 2006, when Amos started working on her latest album.

Isabel is just a mere amateur compared to the real Amos, who’s been doing this for 15 years and counting. Amos has experience on her side, and she knows how to put on a great show.

She’s the real thing.