Tori Amos Scarlet's Walk Half-Speed Mastered 2LP

Newly remastered on half speed cut double vinyl, the critically acclaimed Scarlet's Walk follows Tori Amos as she describes the story of a post 9/11 America through the lens of a cross-country road trip, and the people met along the way. It features songs "A Sorta Fairytale" and "Taxi Ride," along with the rest of the original track list that makes up a journey of sadness, grace, and longing told from an aspect of rich storytelling and composition.

Her seventh release (eighth if you count the self-maligned Y Kant Tori Read) was the first on Epic and was originally released in October of 2002. Written mostly on a cross-country road trip shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on NYC and Washington, D.C., the album serves as a travelogue with an entire cast of characters who embody the spirit of a country searching for identity.

Much was made at the time of release about its concept but following the narrative is secondary to the feel of the music, which is warm, melodic, and welcoming, never feeling labored as so much of her last four albums often did... If this isn't as startling as Little Earthquakes or majestic as Under the Pink, so be it. It's confident, alluring, and accomplished, luring listeners in instead of daring them to follow.

Against gleaming, meltingly smooth arrangements, she crafts iconic tales, vague but rich with resonance and imagery... The songs are one after another of Amos's patented ultra-emotive ballads, driven by portentous piano chords that swell and crash over lush orchestration.

As usual, her melodies stubbornly refuse to turn into hooks, preferring to twirl into new territory. But her approach suits the material, which flows like the colors on a weather map, from Los Angeles to Nevada, from New York to Virginia, gathering thunder along the way... This is heady stuff. But even when the imagery gets dense, Amos' generous spirit lets you in. Your land is her land. Of thee she sings. Buckle up.