Tori Amos’ 2007 release of the album American Doll Posse is unlike any of her previous albums for several reasons.
Experimental Nature
Most, if not all, of Amos’ songs are already written in a particular voice or character. They could be telling a story (“Horses,” “Me and a Gun”), speaking their mind (“Silent All These Years”), or describing another person (“Maryanne,” “Cornflake Girl”). In fact, Amos is so intimate with her songs that she once described the song “cooling” as a “little girl” who “didn’t want to be on any of the records.”
However, American Doll Posse is the first album that has a consistent group of five named characters. There are no other voices thrown in; every song is sung by one or two of these characters.
Isabel starts off the album with the song “Yo George,” a negative political commentary. Amos describes Isabel as being the hardest for an audience to relate to, which is why the character does not make as many appearances in concerts. The next character who sings is Amos herself, who longs for honesty and intimacy throughout the album with the person she sings to.
Clyde, the third voice, is perhaps the most complex character. She displays true affection, addictions, anxiety, and identity confusion. “Familiar silhouettes left whips and chains behind / I’m boycotting trends / it’s my new look this season,” she sings in the song “Girl Disappearing.” In the album picture next to Clyde, Amos writes “When I meet a person I try and see not their mask, with its defenses, but what’s underneath. I get accused of refusing to acknowledge who a person is choosing to be right now. . . . But I say, hold on people, this is only who this person THINKS they are about. So this so-called Loser person is confused. But if no one sees their potential then they may not ever see it themselves and that would be tragic.”
Then comes the coming-of-age, rebellious, experimental Pip, followed by pleasure-loving and sexually-charged Santa. They come together for one song, “Body and Soul,” in which they reject the judgment they receive and welcome their enemies in for a session of love. Amos claims to rely on these characters to energize her shows.
Going the independent Route
The creative structure is not the only big change that came with American Doll Posse. The album is also the last of Amos’ that will be appearing under the Epic/Sony label. She is now working on producing her songs independently, as well as giving up the touring scene to spend more time with her family. On breaking from Epic/Sony, she comments, "It is time for us as artists to stop being dependent, dependent on any system that has become undependable. Only then can we help to create a new system that propagates and secures independence for each creator."
Amos reaffirms in the album cover that being an artist means being receptive to the world around her and being a “scribe” and a “cocreater." In an interview with Rip It Up magazine, Amos reveals that while her experience shaped the women who sang in her album, they also shaped her in the process. “Each one of them has affected me in ways that are hard to describe,” she is quoted. “I’m not the same person I was before I made this album.”
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