:: Fiona Apple - Extraordinary Machine (plus DVD)

Fiona Apple

This is one of my favourite albums of 2005 and comes from one of my favourite artists of the last ten years. I’ve missed Fiona badly over the past five years because she is a truly gifted singer-songwriter who puts more depth and emotion into her music than most present-day artists. It is quite something to firstly consider this dual CD/DVD package. It features: the album audio on the CD side, and the DVD side has the entire album in Enhanced Stereo, brand-new videos for “Not About Love” and “Parting Gift (live),” never before released, live performances of 5 songs filmed at the club Largo in Los Angeles, including “Fast As You Can” and “Paper Bag”, and behind-the-scenes footage. “Extraordinary Machine” is an album whose focus is her songs. And this batch deserves a close inspection. You might remember that the songs were originally recorded with producer Jon Brion more than two years ago. Word had it that Fiona shelved the whole project, because it didn’t do anything for her, and then it was almost completely redone with hip-hop producer Mike Elizondo (worked with Eminem, 50 Cent, Dr. Dre). The opening and closing tracks are from the original sessions finished back in May 2003, while the rest were done with Elizondo. She brings a desperate sincerity to each tune, maybe indicating that she can only be happy when she's sad, but she capably manages not to wallow in self-pity. Don’t figure that Elizondo’s presence has led to hip-hop touches. Rather this is Fiona as her fans know and love her, belting out angst-ridden yet defiant songs from her piano and showcasing her articulate lyrical gifts. The lyrics are the focal point and are as strong and poignant as ever. Fiona’s voice is strong and still comes across as beautifully effortless. Her piano playing is simply gorgeous. Whatever the reason for her album’s delay, it is definitely worth the wait as Fiona makes her unique brand of beautiful music. “Extraordinary Machine” sounds like nothing else in today’s pop world.