Tori Amos review – fans hang on every note of this dramatic deep dive into her back catalogue

City Hall, SheffieldThe masterful performer previews her allegorical new album about the ‘fight for democracy over tyranny’ amid a set full of immaculate musicianshipAhead of her 18th studio album, In Times of Dragons, and on her first tour in three years, Tori Amos is navigating the brutal state of the world in a way only she knows how: by channelling Celtic gods and turning into a half-dragon, half-woman character. The allegorical tales that make up her forthcoming record – “a metaphorical story about the fight for democracy over tyranny” – are evident on the early outing and live debut of Shush. A dark, doomy, track that slowly unfurls like a southern gothic tale, albeit one about battling an evil billionaire lizard demon husband. It’s big, dramatic, world-building stuff. But it’s also emblematic of Amos’s knack for delivering complex, weighty subject matter with deftness and fluidity.However, this is not a run through of her as-yet-unreleased album. Instead, Amos dives deep into her vast and sprawling back catalogue, from the delicate deep cut Ruby Through the Looking-Glass to the atmospheric, slow-burn jazzy grooves of Little Amsterdam. Continue reading...