Extraordinary Machine

There's a new layer of perspective on her magnificent third album. [3 Oct 2005]

With a less confessional and more confrontational attitude, this long-gestating album has lost the tenderness found on "Tidal" and some of "When the Pawn . . .," but her execution still commands attention. [8 Oct 2005]

For every song that's been improved there's one that's been unnecessarily tooled with.

Extraordinary Machine may be more accessible, but it remains an art-pop album in its attitude, intent and presentation -- it's just that the presentation is cleaner, making her attitude appealing and her intent easier to ascertain, and that's what makes this final, finished Extraordinary Machine something pretty close to extraordinary.

Apple's strongest and most detailed batch of songs yet.

Not only have Brion’s strings been replaced by an indescribably awkward alt-rock guitar riff and a misplaced drum beat, but Apple’s vocals have lost all of their bite and passion. On Brion’s work, she seemed hungry, ready to get back into it all. Here she retains the emotion that such a talented singer can muster on a good day but none of the rawness that signifies her best work.

Her voice has grown huskier with age, the songs are barely there, and hip-hop producer Mike Elizondo doesn't have the delicate hand that's required to bring them to life.

Apart the two versions are about equal, combined they could have been amazing.

The officially released version of Extraordinary Machine remains a decent-to-good album, one that showcases Apple's considerable vocal and key-pounding talents.... The shame of it all is that Apple, after six years of silence, could've made a more definitive, progressive statement rather than something familiar and similar-- and we've got the bootlegs to prove it.

It's another solid set of passionate, angry, marvelously produced songs delivered by a singular voice, and it succeeds by following a muse that doesn't just ignore genre distinctions and pop delineations—it doesn't know they exist.

With Extraordinary Machine, she shatters already sky-high expectations.

A fine record.

A rudderless piece of work.

The title track and "Waltz" bookend Extraordinary Machine. Both excel, set to Brion's signature command of crisp, idiomatic, Van Dyke Parks-influenced Hollywood symphonics. But the Elizondo-Kehew tracks top them.

This is one helluva piece of singer-songwriter art. [Nov 2005, p.129]

Lacking both the musical and counter-cultural thrill of the Brion recordings, this album turns away from a certain artistic "rawness" in the original recordings, razing away counter-melodies and acoustic decay for a well-polished delivery that presents the photogenic songstress in a more "flattering" light.

Elizondo's zippy production effectively pushes Apple's tendency to plod. [Nov 2005, p.96]

There's now a sardonic wit to these break-up ballads. [Dec 2005, p.120]

She’s clever and sharp with her lyrical daggers, and she’s frighteningly aware of the impact of her own voice.

Although Mike Elizondo adds momentum, Jon Brion's colors still predominate, and the melodic and structural contours are all Apple's.

In a genre hardly noted for springing surprises on its listeners, Extraordinary Machine sounds like a real achievement: however torturous the gestation, it seems worthwhile.

If the back end didn't sag, this cyborg would be unstoppable.

This is a frequently great and occasionally bold statement from an - extraordinary - artist on top of her game.

With its prowling, piano-led menace and barely contained fury, Extraordinary Machine offers ample confirmation that Apple is far darker than your average singer-songwriter. [Jan 2006, p.126]

A fine, off-beat listen. [Jan 2006, p.124]