Episode 7: Little Earthquakes || When Pianos Refused To Be Guitars

Messing with the Master: Tori Amos

Content warning: this episode discusses SA. Please take care while listening.

Objectively speaking, Tori Amos’ Little Earthquakes is one of the all time great debut records. On the latest episode of Messing With The Master, Kristen, Matt and Joe lovingly look back and contextualize this seminal album, which laid down the foundation for the mythology of Tori and created a language all her own. The bracing new musical vocabulary of Little Earthquakes truly signaled the birth of a star.

Very few– if any– albums from debut artists sustain the kind of power and resonance of Little Earthquakes. Amos dared to make the most private parts of her life public, infused them with poetry, gathered an army of fellow survivors, and created a genuine community that’s with her to this day.

Crafting an origin story for the ages, Amos proved she understood the assignment and the stakes and caught a ride with the moon. The prom queen minister’s daughter next door made a modern rock record and became a star. It felt like we knew her and spoke the same language. Oh, these little earthquakes. Here we go again. It feels familiar because we’ve all been there. Tori took a major risk setting her diary to music, and verbalizing the verboten, but it’s one that continues to speak directly to the hearts of countless listeners, somehow, after all these years.

Playlists:

• Joey
• Matt
• Kristen