A Man's Perspective: A Review of Tori Amos’ Choirgirl hotel

Introduction

I’ve had the blessing of meeting Tori Amos twice—the most recent encounter in March 2025 (image below). Tori and I separately create music. Hers is led by the Muses; mine is Darksoul—a spiritual and artistic genre created and copyrighted at the age of 13 in 1993 (see my latest single, Darkened Room, here: Darkened Room).

My all-time favorite Tori track is Icicle, from the album God with a Big G (aka Under the Pink). That particular song helped shape my world, especially the line "I think The Book is missing some pages." -- Brilliant!

The Review

From the Choirgirl Hotel is my favorite Tori Amos album. Each time I face a profound loss in life, the soul yearns for the sonic and spiritual journey that this album offers.

Hoping that Tori one day soon ~ releases a full vinyl and CD box set of this work, complete with the EPK, a guided meditation, and an audio story—a one-lady narrative sharing all that occurred during the creation of this magnificent project.

As with most complete albums, there is always one track that moves me to tears. For this record, it’s the B-side: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. It was around the holiday season that Tori lost her three-month-old first daughter to miscarriage. The bonus track Violet’s Eyes speaks to this directly:

"Looking for Violet's eyes
Your heart they say
Never started beating
And silly I'm
still sillily talking to her
Talking to her"

These tracks are soul-shaking, and remind us that during a season of joy for many, others carry unbearable grief. That contrast—the amplified pain beneath the surface of celebration—is the emotional heartbeat of this song. I always try to keep in mind those who are hurting during the holidays, and these two tracks embody that sentiment with profound grace.

Tracklist (Including Japanese Bonus and Unreleased Tracks):

1. Spark
    
2. Cruel
    
3. Black-Dove (January)
    
4. Raspberry Swirl
    
5. Jackie’s Strength
    
6. i i e e e
    
7. Liquid Diamonds
    
8. She’s Your Cocaine
    
9. Northern Lad
    
10. Hotel
     
11. Playboy Mommy
     
12. Pandora’s Aquarium
     
13. Purple People (Japanese bonus track)
     
14. Violet’s Eyes (Unreleased / Later Miracle Variant)
     
15. Merman
     
16. Bachelorette
     
17. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
     
18. Do It Again
     
19. Cooling
     
20. Never Seen Blue
     
21. Beulah Land
     

Tori was later blessed with her daughter, Tash, who appears on some of her later works.

Spiritual Undercurrents

The "choirgirls" of the title are lost spirit girls of the underworld, guardians of Violet’s soul. While in this physical world the miscarriage was seen as a tragic end, Tori maintained an open channel of communication with the unborn spirit. The songs became lullabies and rituals of return—expressions of longing, resilience, endless communication, and rebirth.

Through tracks like Spark—the opening pain, dragged through a forest of complication—to Cruel, where projection and emotional torment unfold, to Black Dove (January), written of the month-after, the album pulses with vulnerability and transformation.

Raspberry Swirl takes on new meaning of Pink, while Jackie’s Strength draws a powerful parallel to Jackie Onassis’ own miscarriage after three months (1955). 

In i i e e e, Tori’s voice rises into a scream within a church, a cry of “why,” a confrontation with the divine takers. 

The journey continues into the underworld. I would like to see a wall-sized fold-out of Tori's map, along with a copper hotel key replica and markers with where the map stands now—tracing the spiritual descent into the Choirgirl Hotel, where lullabies echo through hollow and phone-ringing corridors.

The Myth of the Record

Pandora’s Aquarium paints Tori submerged in the womb of mythology onto the album artwork, not opening a box, but swimming in the underbelly of creation and parallel loss. Playboy Mommy becomes a sacred lullaby for Violet—a song of endless communication, grief, and unbreakable love.

This album is a loss-bound and found fairy tale, dark and luminous, navigating the netherworld of spiritual communication, and the will to live beyond that which may or may not be laid to rest. As Carl Jung described, this is the manifestation of the Transcendent Function—an integration of sorrow and hope into the Sacred Third. 

I believe Violet still resides, alive in spirit, as one of Tori’s grandest muses. The energy within this album is not only alive—it transcends all time.

Tori deserves a Lifetime Achievement Grammy.

I give From the Choirgirl Hotel 10 out of 10 Diamonds.

by Mikhail Tank 

Björk's second solo label album, (third in total) is titled, POST. If you  watch  the hyper/sonic music video for 'It's All So Quiet', you will see  a  dancing mail-box, if you look at the album cover, you will see Sir  Chalayan's Royal Mail Envelope Jacket that Björk whimsically wears. The  album was mostly recorded at the same Bahamas recording studio as the  elegant Sade Adu's 'Love Is Stronger Than Pride' - Compass Point (see  photos here: https://www.studioexpresso.com/Spotlight%20Archive/Spotlight%20compasspoint.htm).

POST is a whimsical tale, Part II of what Björk called her early "greatest   hits". It is deeply alive and in the moment, even though she went back to London in order to fine-tune the record in its final stretch.

Björk loves to live and create near the ocean, it provides her with home, depth, and confidence. She heard the original version of "It's Oh So   Quiet" on the DIVA collection at a truck stop (hear the original here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ojarj6nTM4 & see the actual DIVA Album https://www.discogs.com/master/672643-Various-DivaCollection).

My  favorite tongue in cheek line  of the record is, "Lottery or Car Crash  or You Join a Cult" from  'Possibly, Maybe' ~ it makes me smile and/or  laugh. The track I wish was a single and music video, which I actually  plan on creating a Darksoul Theatre (my music-theatre, circa 1993)  licensed cover version of, in the future --  is the Tricky co-produced,  ENJOY. I Miss You is super-fun, The Modern Things is a lovely Freud's   Id track, Cover Me (I love the REAL Bat-Cave version available on the   Army of Me maxi-single), Army of Me is excellent and I would love NEW   remixes, it deserves an updated remix maxi-release, You've Been Flirting Again -- I love the Icelandic variant, it lyrically crawls.

This  is one of those albums that will live-on forever, because it  inspires Vivaciousness and Life, and even though Björk called it her  "Promiscuous Record" -- perhaps its ability to not overthink or over-produce has created an everlasting Living Musical Gem.

I would love a new re-release of the album, featuring DISC 1 Full Album   in HD Audio. DISC 2 Variant Master with other versions / demos as noted above, including B-sides. DISC 3 Audio Creative Commentary about each   track and the creative concept behind the entire project. Packaged with  a  (re-printed) hand-written and signed letter from Björk to the music appreciators. Would also love to perhaps - collaborate in the future.

Best, Mt