There are a few
things that can make a gay man gush on a Tuesday night in
New York City. One of them is seeing Tori Amos perform live
at the launch party of her new album, American Doll
Posse, at the swanky Spotlight Live
bar in Times Square. It's no secret the
Grammy nominee has an iron grip on LGBT fans due to her
eccentric persona and poetic lyrics that sing right into our
hearts. And American Doll Posse only
tightens her hold on us. The album is a groundbreaking mesh
of acting and singing as Amos adopts four distinct
alter egos that are portrayed individually through
various songs.
If that wasn't enough for us to begin with, at
her launch party the bar was serving drinks named
after Amos's different characters, such as the Isabel
CIC Smudger, a drink meant to embody the darker ego,
assisted by Christina vodka and sour-apple
schnapps. However, our favorite was the Tori Classic,
a drink epitomizing the essence of the Doll Posse
personalities through Coppola champagne and a splash of
fruit puree.
Before she performed an intimate 30-minute set
for her guests, Amos found the time to sit down with
The Advocate for a quick and candid interview.
How was the recording of American Doll Posse?
I've had the time of my life making it.
It has been unbelievably demanding, but at the same
time when you're so challenged, and you can complete
it and still stand in a pair of high heels, then you're
doing OK.
And those are some great high heels you are sporting.
Thank you!
What tracks from the new album do you think will be
well-received by your LGBT fans?
Well, "Body and Soul," I think,
between you and me. That's one of my favorites.
Which songs do you foresee gay men cranking up and
dancing to?
As far as turning it up and cranking it up, I
don't know..."You Can Bring Your
Dog," but "Bouncing Off Clouds" is one
that gets mentioned a lot.
What has been the most outrageous story your gay
friends have told you?
There are some outrageous stories from my gay
friends. [Designer] Ashish, who is designing touring
stage clothes, you know, the bleeding
shots--he's from India, and I'm
encouraging him to come to New York for the shows in
October because he has the craziest insane love life.
I'm getting him to keep a journal because he
does things--he runs into such [crazy situations].
Such as?
One time he went out with this guy to a movie,
and he ordered popcorn. He went and got the popcorn
hoping this would be the love of his life, his
romance. He brought the popcorn back to the guy, and what
happens? Hang on [Calls over friend].
She'll help me give the particulars.
FRIEND: Well the guy is like,
"You're not going to eat that, are
you?" And he goes, like, "Yeah,"
and his date goes, "Oh, no, if you eat that, I
can't be here with you." So basically he had
to get rid of his popcorn because the guy has a
popcorn fetish.
AMOS: Ashish calls him "Popcorn
Man." So he has all these incredible
heartbreaking experiences, but he makes the most beautiful
garments for women.
Sounds like a typical gay first date--never ingest
unnecessary carbs. But before we let you go, is there
anything you want to tell your gay fans out there?
Well, over the years just to thank them for
trying to remind me how to be...that life is
about...[pauses] ecstasy has to be
e plus e, erotica plus eloquence. And it
has always been the eloquence that they've tried to
remind me to keep because the first without the last is
just--it can be a sad story, a bit tragic.