Monday, May 16, 2005
Original Sinsuality 2005
I attended Tori afterall and those 120 minutes of her was worth every cent of the AUD110 ticket, and a lot more. I was plonked down, all alone with only a fur-trimmed jacket and striped slacks to keep me company. Thankfully I wasn't the only one feeling high-and-dry in Hamer Hall. Everyone looked like they were at least comfortably 10 years older than me... a fact that wasn't lost on me throughout the evening. She entered, placed both palms over her head and did a bow to the audience. Her signature red locks fell freely over this most artful white/light green frock she was wearing. It was almost empire-cut (cos I don't know if it was, it just seemed so), had a bow at the back and fell chop-chop to her knees. She wore a bright red tank under the dress and a pair of red wedges to match.It was a one-woman show, with her playing the grand piano, organ and electronic keyboard throughout the night. The first song of the night was Amberwaves from Scarlet's Walk. As she crashed the piano keys, she lifted her right knee and bowed over the piano. The spotlight shone down on her, illuminating her red hair dramatically. So began her show.
The set list was obscure, even for someone who has listened to almost all of her albums, save The Beekeeper (which I've been slow to warm up to given the lacklustre reviews from my friends). She mainly played songs from Beekeeper like the title track, Parasol, The Power of Orange Knickers amongst others. Older selections included Happy Phantom and Horses and Rattlesnakes. Now tell me those are her most well-known songs to date. Twelve years and several albums later, Tori wasn't going to compromise by playing what the audience probably wanted. If you aren't hardcore Tori enough, sorry but you'll just have to forget about humming along and just appreciate her showsmanship.
I thought she was a spectacular vocalist and pianist. She was awesome with the improvisations. At times, like for Beauty Queen/Horses she'd play both the piano and organ at the same time - which seemed very sexual to me (imagine: in order to play both instruments she's to work both pedals right? ...). Her knack for performance aside, I thought she could've included more upbeat songs. I was really hoping to hear her sing Cornflake Girl and Bliss live... or at least Snow Cherries From France. But no! she decided to go for a more moody, sombre setlist. Not that I'm upset but well, fans want different stuff sometimes.
For me the highlight of the show came from her tribute Don't Dream Its Over for the Crowded House drummer. It was requested from a fan through email. I dont know who the drummer is, don't care, but her rendition was lurvely. I tried looking it up online but guess no one bothered to record the song down... yet hehe. Tori fans if you do come across that classic, grab it cos it's worth a good 4 -5 mins of your time. She also sang Puff the Magic Dragon. Cute and friendly the title may sound, it was actually much more depressing in reality.
She ended with Silent All These Years, not my fave track though it seemed to be most everyone esle's. I dunno why. Well it was the only encore song outta the four she performed which I could immediatley recognise, so I figured this was Tori's concession for the fans. Of course we lapped it up like we did almost all her songs.
As I walked out I saw a good handful of punks and goths, in full length red leather trenchcoats and black platform boots, and I quietly wondered how does Tori fit into their punk/goth lifestyle? Many fans also had dyed bright red hair as some form of visual tribute to Tori. So farny the fans. For me, camera-less and fiercely reluctant on splurging 25 bucks on a tour programme booklet which had more pics of Tori than writing (looks arent her selling point), I came home with a ticketstub and the image of Tori bent over the piano with light beaming down on her, seared into my mind.
lux at 4:57 pm