What a journey! This album had me feeling all the feelings. 😀🤔😦 What's your favorite FTBC track? For me, I'd say "Under the Table", "Cosmonauts", and "Ladies". So good! Video timestamps below... *TIMESTAMPS* 0:00 The best album of 2020? 1:11 On "Criminal" and MTV 3:04 Album reaction! Tracks 1-7 15:21 Time is our most valuable resource 17:11 Album reaction continued! Tracks 8-13 26:29 Review: Let's all fetch our own bolt cutters
"For Her" hit me really hard. There were two tracks after that, and I uttered maybe one sentence during those last two tracks. I was sort of speechless, just processing it.
I feel like this album might be more understandable from a female point of view. She's definitely angry and not putting up with the bullshit anymore. The themes are very relatable as a woman.
Totally. I wouldn't pretend to fully understand a woman's perspective. But as someone raised by a single mom from when I turned 11, and my closest extended family being my two aunts and their daughters, I feel like I spent more time growing up around women/girls than I did men/boys. I think that influences my perspective, or my ability to relate to perspectives outside of my own.
I always tell people going into this album that it’s best to view it as a punk album, just with jazz and blues aesthetics or as a lo-fi hip-hop and blues album. I think those summations make it a bit easier to digest for some. It’s a big, intimate, simple, complex, off-putting, entrancing record. And it broaches a lot of subjects. Yet, it sounds like a unified work. It’s definitely an accomplishment. “Newspaper”, “Shameika”, “On I Go”, “For Her”, and “I Want You To Love Me” are probably my favorite tracks. This is possibly Fiona’s best album and it’s certainly her most idiosyncratic. However, her whole discography is worth checking out. The Idler Wheel and When the Pawn are my other favorites from her. They’re also acclaimed but quite a bit different from this one and special in their own ways. Also, good for picking up the album’s focus on time. Most people miss that. And it’s nice to see that it got to you on a personal level.
You pretty much nailed how I was feeling listening to this album, in terms of genres (punkish energy, jazz aesthetics, and lo-fi hip hop influence) and it being big yet intimate, simple yet complex. Thanks for the insight!
It took a bit of time for me to fully appreciate this one. Now, it’s one of my favorite albums. The rest of her albums are really good as well. I especially love The Idler Wheel.
Fun facts: Newspaper’s part where she sings “You’re wearing time like a flowery crown. sitting there, sitting that big cat down. And i’m alone on the summit now trying not to let my light go out” represents 2 tarot cards: the strength and the hermit. Cosmonauts was written for a Judd Apatow movie and it didn’t make the soundtrack. it’s basically about the impossibility of monogamy and it was recorded with new vocals. After she released the album, thanks to a pre-school teacher she reached out to Shameika and they are now friends and have a collaboration called “Shameika said”. This is one of my favorite albums of all time and it’s not even top 2 in her discography. You should do a deep dive in her discog, it’s PERFECTION!!!!!
I definitely plan to dive into her discography! I recently read about her reuniting with Shameika. Fiona said when she wrote the song that she wasn't even sure if that memory was real or if she just imagined Shameika for all these years. Life is so cosmic sometimes! Love it.
I hope this is a sign that we’re gonna get more reactions to her albums. The Idler Wheel was one of the most acclaimed albums of the last decade. When The Pawn is arguably her fans’ favorite. (And though it only has a 79 on Metacritic, its acclaim, influence and popularity grew over time). Extraordinary Machine is pretty good. While Tidal is her debut and features her most popular song.
Not sure when, but I will return to her albums on this channel at some point. So much music, so little time. But I am excited after listening to FTBC. Lots of recommendations for Idler Wheel and When The Pawn. Eventually!
Thank you! I’ve been struggling to find the words to describe this album and you hit the nail on the head with your description! I’ll have to check back with you in another 10 years or so when she may release her next album 😜
I just found your channel and I'm already loving it, great stuff. I see a lot of Tom Waits on this album, from the idiosincratic percussion to the way she uses her voice.
Rewatching this video, and you mentioning some songs having hip-hop beats got me thinking how connected to hip-hop Fiona has been. I don’t think it’s really been appreciated by the press and her fans. Of course, a lot of white female singer-songwriters have talked about loving Fiona/being influenced by her as well as drummers/percussionists. But also, “Shameika” is based on someone who eventually became a rapper (her and Fiona even did a remix together called “Shameika Said”). Fiona has been unabashed about how her percussions and beats have been influenced by hip-hop. Kanye West, Jay-Z, Kendrick Lamar, Lil Nas X, Lin-Manual Maranda, Azealia Banks, Frank Ocean have all talked about loving Fiona’s music and/or being influenced by her. Kanye went as far as to say he wanted to be the “Fiona Apple of hip-hop”, and he hired Jon Brion to produce Late Registration because of Jon’s production on Fiona’s album, When The Pawn. As much as has been written about Fiona’s career (and this album in particular), the connection to hip-hop has been mostly overlooked.
I have more thoughts about her incredible vocals and lyrics than I really have time to share (and you covered it really well too), but I do wanna mention a couple things. Firstly, regarding the instrumentals being great for hip-hop, she's talked a lot in interviews about how rhythmically she thinks, and it really makes sense with both the percussion she uses (both in this and her previous album, The Idler Wheel, especially) and her vocal delivery at times. And then speaking of her vocal delivery, you mentioned her reminding you of Bob Dylan at times, and I totally agree. In fact, I once read an interview where she talked about roller-skating around as a kid singing Like a Rollin' Stone 88 times (for the number of keys on a piano), and yeah, I don't doubt he was a huge influence. She actually played some piano on the last Dylan album too, so really she was on both of the top two albums of 2020 on Metacritic.
I love how after three songs you say you really like the album but don't want to jinx it. Then the fourth song plays and you're like "This is my favorite song so far." Haha... always a great sign for an album when the "best song" keeps getting beat by other songs on the album as you listen. Also dropped some wisdom about how 99.9% of us have some unaddressed trauma from our childhoods: "I resent you for being raised right."
Finally reached the end of the video... your impression of the album is spot on. The phrase "fetch the bolt cutters" came from a British TV show starring Gillian Anderson as a police detective. She uttered the phrase when she suspected a woman she was searching for was inside a building locked by a chain. It's on Netflix, but I watched it a very long time ago so I forget the name. It was a good series. Final thought - look for the Vulture articles on this album. One includes a song by song breakdown where Fiona explains her writing process. For Her, for example, was written after she was told the story in the song by a woman whose boss is like a Hollywood exec or something. He was high, raped her, promptly forgot about it.
Thanks for the info. Those Vulture articles sound intriguing. There's a lot to analyze in this album, both musically and lyrically. Looking forward to revisiting this album often.
@Darren Nguyen Okay, I was curious so I just browsed the Wiki for this album and saw this line: "album opener Little Deer pulls from jazz pop and plush 1960s lounge pop". And I immediately geeked out. I'm a fan of 60s lounge music and all things jazzy, so that got me excited. My next couple months are booked up (I try to plan most reactions in advance) and I'm still trying to catch up on 2020 releases. But I'll definitely react to this album later this year. Thanks for the recommendation!
What a journey! This album had me feeling all the feelings. 😀🤔😦 What's your favorite FTBC track? For me, I'd say "Under the Table", "Cosmonauts", and "Ladies". So good! Video timestamps below...
*TIMESTAMPS*
0:00 The best album of 2020?
1:11 On "Criminal" and MTV
3:04 Album reaction! Tracks 1-7
15:21 Time is our most valuable resource
17:11 Album reaction continued! Tracks 8-13
26:29 Review: Let's all fetch our own bolt cutters
Hot Shots part Duex
Robin Hood Men in Tights
The Mask
Kanye West said he wanted to be the 'hip-hop version of Fiona Apple' - and that makes sense to me! Not defending Kanye here btw x
Fun fact, this album was entirely produced on Garage Band
My favorite is For Her. It really helped me have a break-through emotionally.
"For Her" hit me really hard. There were two tracks after that, and I uttered maybe one sentence during those last two tracks. I was sort of speechless, just processing it.
They were banging on shit like metal butterflies and old washing machines in Fiona's house. It's amazing how great it sounds.
I love the homemade DIY feel of the instrumentation, and yet it all sounds beautifully produced.
I feel like this album might be more understandable from a female point of view. She's definitely angry and not putting up with the bullshit anymore. The themes are very relatable as a woman.
Totally. I wouldn't pretend to fully understand a woman's perspective. But as someone raised by a single mom from when I turned 11, and my closest extended family being my two aunts and their daughters, I feel like I spent more time growing up around women/girls than I did men/boys. I think that influences my perspective, or my ability to relate to perspectives outside of my own.
I always tell people going into this album that it’s best to view it as a punk album, just with jazz and blues aesthetics or as a lo-fi hip-hop and blues album. I think those summations make it a bit easier to digest for some. It’s a big, intimate, simple, complex, off-putting, entrancing record. And it broaches a lot of subjects. Yet, it sounds like a unified work. It’s definitely an accomplishment. “Newspaper”, “Shameika”, “On I Go”, “For Her”, and “I Want You To Love Me” are probably my favorite tracks.
This is possibly Fiona’s best album and it’s certainly her most idiosyncratic. However, her whole discography is worth checking out. The Idler Wheel and When the Pawn are my other favorites from her. They’re also acclaimed but quite a bit different from this one and special in their own ways.
Also, good for picking up the album’s focus on time. Most people miss that. And it’s nice to see that it got to you on a personal level.
You pretty much nailed how I was feeling listening to this album, in terms of genres (punkish energy, jazz aesthetics, and lo-fi hip hop influence) and it being big yet intimate, simple yet complex. Thanks for the insight!
It took a bit of time for me to fully appreciate this one. Now, it’s one of my favorite albums. The rest of her albums are really good as well. I especially love The Idler Wheel.
Fun facts:
Newspaper’s part where she sings “You’re wearing time like a flowery crown. sitting there, sitting that big cat down. And i’m alone on the summit now trying not to let my light go out” represents 2 tarot cards: the strength and the hermit.
Cosmonauts was written for a Judd Apatow movie and it didn’t make the soundtrack. it’s basically about the impossibility of monogamy and it was recorded with new vocals.
After she released the album, thanks to a pre-school teacher she reached out to Shameika and they are now friends and have a collaboration called “Shameika said”.
This is one of my favorite albums of all time and it’s not even top 2 in her discography. You should do a deep dive in her discog, it’s PERFECTION!!!!!
I definitely plan to dive into her discography! I recently read about her reuniting with Shameika. Fiona said when she wrote the song that she wasn't even sure if that memory was real or if she just imagined Shameika for all these years. Life is so cosmic sometimes! Love it.
Glad to see you listening to this. Been a Fiona Apple fan since her first album. She’s quirky and talented and I absolutely love her ❤
I hope this is a sign that we’re gonna get more reactions to her albums. The Idler Wheel was one of the most acclaimed albums of the last decade. When The Pawn is arguably her fans’ favorite. (And though it only has a 79 on Metacritic, its acclaim, influence and popularity grew over time). Extraordinary Machine is pretty good. While Tidal is her debut and features her most popular song.
Not sure when, but I will return to her albums on this channel at some point. So much music, so little time. But I am excited after listening to FTBC. Lots of recommendations for Idler Wheel and When The Pawn. Eventually!
Thank you! I’ve been struggling to find the words to describe this album and you hit the nail on the head with your description! I’ll have to check back with you in another 10 years or so when she may release her next album 😜
@@avaria1538 Haha. Thanks for watching!
I just found your channel and I'm already loving it, great stuff. I see a lot of Tom Waits on this album, from the idiosincratic percussion to the way she uses her voice.
Thanks! Yeah, this album is so idiosyncratic. Tom Waits is a good comparison. Hadn’t thought of that.
Rewatching this video, and you mentioning some songs having hip-hop beats got me thinking how connected to hip-hop Fiona has been. I don’t think it’s really been appreciated by the press and her fans. Of course, a lot of white female singer-songwriters have talked about loving Fiona/being influenced by her as well as drummers/percussionists. But also, “Shameika” is based on someone who eventually became a rapper (her and Fiona even did a remix together called “Shameika Said”). Fiona has been unabashed about how her percussions and beats have been influenced by hip-hop. Kanye West, Jay-Z, Kendrick Lamar, Lil Nas X, Lin-Manual Maranda, Azealia Banks, Frank Ocean have all talked about loving Fiona’s music and/or being influenced by her. Kanye went as far as to say he wanted to be the “Fiona Apple of hip-hop”, and he hired Jon Brion to produce Late Registration because of Jon’s production on Fiona’s album, When The Pawn. As much as has been written about Fiona’s career (and this album in particular), the connection to hip-hop has been mostly overlooked.
It's a beautiful thing how genres can cross-pollinate, and how circular musical influence can be. Thanks for the insight.
I have more thoughts about her incredible vocals and lyrics than I really have time to share (and you covered it really well too), but I do wanna mention a couple things. Firstly, regarding the instrumentals being great for hip-hop, she's talked a lot in interviews about how rhythmically she thinks, and it really makes sense with both the percussion she uses (both in this and her previous album, The Idler Wheel, especially) and her vocal delivery at times.
And then speaking of her vocal delivery, you mentioned her reminding you of Bob Dylan at times, and I totally agree. In fact, I once read an interview where she talked about roller-skating around as a kid singing Like a Rollin' Stone 88 times (for the number of keys on a piano), and yeah, I don't doubt he was a huge influence. She actually played some piano on the last Dylan album too, so really she was on both of the top two albums of 2020 on Metacritic.
Thanks for the info. Playing with Dylan must've been a big milestone for her. She really had a great 2020 musically speaking.
I love how after three songs you say you really like the album but don't want to jinx it. Then the fourth song plays and you're like "This is my favorite song so far." Haha... always a great sign for an album when the "best song" keeps getting beat by other songs on the album as you listen.
Also dropped some wisdom about how 99.9% of us have some unaddressed trauma from our childhoods: "I resent you for being raised right."
Finally reached the end of the video... your impression of the album is spot on. The phrase "fetch the bolt cutters" came from a British TV show starring Gillian Anderson as a police detective. She uttered the phrase when she suspected a woman she was searching for was inside a building locked by a chain. It's on Netflix, but I watched it a very long time ago so I forget the name. It was a good series.
Final thought - look for the Vulture articles on this album. One includes a song by song breakdown where Fiona explains her writing process. For Her, for example, was written after she was told the story in the song by a woman whose boss is like a Hollywood exec or something. He was high, raped her, promptly forgot about it.
Thanks for the info. Those Vulture articles sound intriguing. There's a lot to analyze in this album, both musically and lyrically. Looking forward to revisiting this album often.
It got better and better for me the more I listened.
You need to react to The Turning Wheel by Spellling!! I have a feeling you will love. Aoty for me
Thanks! I'll add it to the list.
@Darren Nguyen Okay, I was curious so I just browsed the Wiki for this album and saw this line: "album opener Little Deer pulls from jazz pop and plush 1960s lounge pop". And I immediately geeked out. I'm a fan of 60s lounge music and all things jazzy, so that got me excited.
My next couple months are booked up (I try to plan most reactions in advance) and I'm still trying to catch up on 2020 releases. But I'll definitely react to this album later this year. Thanks for the recommendation!
wasnt a fan of the MTV version of Fiona now that that MTV crap is over shes matured and I love this album!!