Tori Amos - Video Collection: Fade to Red
The combination of music, visuals, and the artist's commentary makes for compelling entertainment inTori Amos - Video Collection: Fade to Red. Spanning Amos' entire career (from 1992'sLittle Earthquakesthrough 2005'sThe Beekeeper) and compiled on a two-disc set, these 19 videos feature some very striking images: the decidedly weird special effects in "A Sorta Fairytale," making Amos and actor Adrien Brody's heads appear where knees and hands ought to be; the bound and blindfolded Amos in the dark and disturbing "Spark"; Spanish women lying in the street as a handsome priest passes among them in "Past the Mission"; the slow-motion riot scenes in "1000 Oceans," Amos' response to the 1992 Los Angeles riots. But the singer-songwriter-pianist's breathy commentary track is as the dramatic as the videos themselves. Usually referring to herself in the third person, Amos admits to "a fascination with the beheading of Anne Boleyn… the illicit mistress of the Protestant reformation," identifies with "the Black Madonna, the independent woman… who is being shamed for her sensuality," describes the "Cornflake Girl" video as "evil on a playground… sort ofMean Girlsbefore there wasMean Girls," and regularly references mythology. What she doesn't explain is why the same bonus features (two extra tracks and a making-of featurette) appear on both discs, or why a couple of fan favorites (like "Strange Little Girl") aren't included at all.--Sam Graham