by
Tori Amos
- Record Label: Universal Republic
- Release Date: May 19, 2009
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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The songs in between are the exploration of the journey from that dark, quiet beginning to that beautifully indulgent conclusion, and boy are there some twists and turns along the way.
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Further mystical adventures from grunge-era Kate Bush.
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Her 12th studio release, Abnormally Attracted to Sin, finds her in full command of her expanded arsenal, creating an overall sound that's as psychedelic as it is classic.
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Sometimes her brains get a little too big for her Bible. But when she's banging on her piano over layers of lush electronics, she's got the rapture part down.
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A 17-song steam trunk of an album, the new collection strikes a canny balance between Victorian-inspired decadence, mythical pathos and arch camp.
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Occasionally vague, sometimes incohesive and a little self-indulgent it may be, but ultimately Abnormally Attracted to Sin is an abnormally attractive piece of work, and another fine example of the shining talent that is Tori Amos.
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But even with its bloated running time, Sin is more thematically satisfying and sonically adventurous than anything Amos has recorded in years.
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The big problem: Abnormally Attracted To Sin is 17 tracks long, and a lot of it could have been left on the cutting-room floor....The remaining 10 or so songs are a reasonably memorable, inspired collection that would have made a pretty great album by themselves.
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Abnormally Attracted To Sin turns out to be a collection of tracks that simply doesn't work as a whole because it can't properly be listened to in one go. Pity, for somewhere in amongst it all Tori proves that she's still capable of producing a storming album.
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Amos doesn't record as much as most artists, and it must be tempting to give fans everything she can, but in this case, it's hurt her a bit. Still there, are many tracks here worth adding to one's Amos shelf.
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Q MagazineAbnormally Attracted To Sin is a long haul, but among these 18 songs ate some of the best Amos has written. [Jun 2009, p.123]
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Under The RadarMusically, the 17 songs here are mostly dark and sweeping, Amos hesitatiing to provide the big melodies to latch onto, rather roping the listener in with a feelinga and entrancing with her lyrics. [Summer 2009, p.64]
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Unfortunately, these hook-starved arrangements tend toward a static brand of ambient cabaret, which makes Amos' lyrics easy to tune out. Too many little earthquakes, not enough seismic jolts.
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The result is a set of prog-inspired balladry with less bounce than her last disc.
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Abnormally Attracted to Sin is, by quite some distance, her weakest album yet.
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MojoToriphiles will be delighted to find a generous 76 minutes of songstuff here but the less committed might never get past the veritable encyclopedia of tortured vocal affections that blight the stodgy opening track. [Jun 2009, p.102]
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UncutToris 10th refuses to gel into anything illuminating. [Jun 2009, p.83]
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 122 out of 139
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Mixed: 13 out of 139
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Negative: 4 out of 139
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GuyMAug 5, 2009
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MuzSJul 27, 2009
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SisterJanet1219Jul 23, 2009