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"Midwinter Graces" Serves Some New Holiday Fare

The Anti-Harpist | Maryland, USA | 11/09/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Tori Amos creates a refreshing take on the holiday season with her new album: "Midwinter Graces". Working with her usual team of Mark Chamberlain on drums, Jon Evans on bass, and Mac Aladdin on guitars, plus some nice orchestration, we see a lot of new Tori, and very little of the old/expected. The tracks especially worth noting are the ones that take the typical Christmas tunes and switch it up for something new and interesting, like the harpsichord filled "What Child, Nowell" or tabla'd "Star of Wonder". She is a master at taking our expectations of what SHOULD appear in a Christmas album and changing them.



The best track on the whole album, and my favorite, was "Pink and Glitter". While a slightly disarming title, the sudden entrance of the brass and the great big-band sound lend this piece a lot of "glitter". I highly suggest snuggling up to your lover with this, maybe on New Year's Eve, or maybe just by a fire....you get the idea. Tori's jazz vocals make a comeback, and are rarely drowned out by the brass, so the blend seems all right. This is one of the two highly publicized tracks, but this one is well deserved.



One of the other tracks getting advertising attention is "A Silent Night With You". Honestly, I felt this song was pretty mainstream sounding--maybe even a little too, although it did hark back to the sound of "Gold Dust" or many of the tracks in "Scarlet's Walk". Also, if anyone has heard any of her jazz covers, her vocals are reminiscent of it. The harmonies are pretty, but this whole track was just a little too repetitive and expected for me. Also the tubular bells to give the Christmas effect were overdone. But hey, how can you avoid that when you're trying to make a song sound like the holidays?!!! Of course, this is one of the ones the advertising is promoting, which annoys me just a little bit, because I don't think it's one of her best, nor one of her most creative.



However, then you have tracks like "Candle: Coventry Carol" that contain gorgeous medieval sounding singing and instrumentation, but sound like what you'd expect from a Christmas album. One track of note on the CD is one that actually sounds like the Tori we all know + some holiday cheer, er, holiday epic-ness: "Winter's Carol". Epic is the best word. The gorgeous piano intro, strings and vocals lend a lot to this. "Our New Year" is the only other track to stay within Tori Amos' usual musical language, but it's not a happy story! If you're looking for Christmas cheer, avoid this track. If you're just looking for good music, take a listen.



"Midwinter Graces" was definitely a refreshing look at the season, and didn't take spiritual sides one way or the other. Anyone (no matter what your prejudices/beliefs) can enjoy it because it's just good music!! I look forward to seeing what tracks end up on the Christmas stations this year.



If anyone wants a more in-depth review in terms of the individual tracks, head over to:[...] and check out the review there. I recommend buying this CD, and I hope other peope enjoy it as much as I did."

Subtle Classic Tori, One Great Holiday Album

Francisco Feliciano | Detroit, Michigan, USA | 11/10/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I may not be your typical professional reviewer, but I wanted to give my little feedback here while the CD is still new. I just bought it today (the DVD/CD combo) and I like it very much. First of all, am I truly the only one to hear some classic Tori elements in a few of the tracks. Especially in "Winter's Carol," which could have easily been placed in any of her 90's albums. I mean, hell, the piano is finally more pronounced compared to her last few albums. That alone is refreshing. Regardless, I found the tracks to be very nice and well done and not typical rehashed holiday music that annoy me to no end. I am normally not a fan of holiday music (yes, yes, very Scrooge of me, I know) because Christmas carols are so overrated and overdone. However, seeing as how this particular album had a lot more creativity poured into it for being a holiday album, along with a more historical insight, and that I love Tori, it is no wonder why I would buy this album. None of the songs are even boring at all. I think she did a great job because it's not completely holiday sounding, so it's almost like getting a brand new studio album (not sure if this counts as one). You can listen to a few of these tracks without it being close to the holidays, which is nice. The artwork is amazing! Have any of you seen the inside? I have the DVD version and the booklet is breath-taking. She included the four typical natural elements: air, earth, fire, water. So it's not too much of a Christmas album, but more with elements of one. She also explains the album in great detail in the DVD interview, which lasts 31 minutes. She is so intelectual and I admire her intelligence and articulation. Oh, and before I forget, in track 5, there was quite a surprise: her daughter Natashya sings! Well... barely, anyway, but it was cute to hear for a change. Overall, the album is very worth buying and I would recommend it, especially the DVD/CD combo since the price difference was only a dollar at BestBuy. My favorite tracks as of now are "Star of Wonder" and "Winter's Carol." I liked "Abnormally Attracted to Sin" to a certain degree (though it is one of my least favorites, along with "Scarlet's Walk" and "Strange Little Girls") so it was refreshing to listen to a much better album. And I'm sorry, but this album is far better than those I listed. I could definitely listen to all the songs on this as opposed to the others I listed... well... except for "Silent Night" because I'm so sick of that song in general, no matter how good Tori reworked it. The only downside is that my version nor the standard version comes with the 15th track titled "King..." something, I forget. Where would I get that at? I saw it on iTunes, was not sure if it was an iTunes exclusive or not. But yes, here you go... my review: take it or leave it. But I tried to be as fair as possible without sounding like a fanboy. Still, my favorite albums will always be "Under the Pink" and "From the Choir Girl Hotel." I still prefer classic Tori, but can appreciate new Tori (regardless of how badly I miss classic Tori). :)"