Pretty Good Year is a song that was born from a letter sent to Tori by a man who had difficulties with women. The song, refered to by Tori as "Ode to the Banana King pt 2", is about the confusion when things die, like relationships. The love lost is evidences in the allusion of the "eternal footman", taken from a poem about a man in love. It speaks to me of all the things one tries to make things alright again, while thinking, "It was a pretty good year, all in all". A beautiful song.
Another of Tori's comments on organized religion, and how so many seek him out and are let down. Tori suggests that maybe the man upstairs is lonely, and needs a woman in his life. To me, it speaks of the feelings I have of God being rather ambivalent to the suffering on this earth, and the lack of mercy shown to those in pain. To me, it seems that a woman would be good to teach him caring and compassion. The video speaks volumes, with images paralleling drug use with religious practices.
Bells For Her literally poured out of Tori; luckily for us Eric Rosse had hit record "just in case"! To me, it speaks of two friends who have been close since childhood. One relies on the other for her mind, her advice. The other relies on her friend's bravery, her ability to speak up. Together, they go through life, though one of them (Tori's first person) knows that something is coming, something that will pull them apart. That something is a man.
The song ends on a sad note, with "You have her face and her eyes but you are not her." Tori realizes that the girl her friend was is gone, replaced with a new person, a new soul. And though she cannot stop loving her, she resigns herself to the end of the friendship, as she knew all along that she couldn't stop it.
Tori has said this song is about the mistreatment of young boys at some sort of facility, which I will call "the mission". To me, taking this as a clue, the song is about Tori's days as a minister's daughter, moving about with her father perhaps and helping people. This would correspond with "she said she knew what my books did not". As the song unfolds, it speaks of a woman, a "hot girl" who knows the truth of what happens at the facility, knows what is happening. From the last verse, with the line "hey they found a body", I get the sense that someone killed the owner who was being cruel, and the girl knows more than she's telling.
An alternate theory on the song's meaning posed by some is that the song is about Jesus and the crucifixion, and Mary Magdalene is the "hot girl" who knows things only she knows (about her love affair with Jesus).
This is a song about being left by someone, left alone to wonder about what went wrong. Tori speaks in this song of someone who has left her not because he doesn't love her -- I get the impression he does -- but rather because she could not open herself up to him completely, could not trust in him as he trusted her. It sounds almost as if it's foreshadowing her break-up with Eric Rosse to me, but that's just a personal ponderance. She's trying to justify to herself whether it was all her fault, or whether somewhere, he is flawed too. She can't handle the idea that she is entirely to blame. A sad song, one that I relate to all too well.
Tori has said this song refers to a woman she knew who was involved with a US Senator and knew too much about government operations and thus had to leave town. Honestly, I think this is the Tori song I like absolutely least because it says nothing to me. The only part I like is the line at the end, where Tori's friend urges her to open her eyes and be less naive. I apologize for having so little to say, but I just DON'T like this song.
A deliciously violent song, about a co-worker who Tori apparently can't stand. I love this song because it is so true. Often in our lives, we come across someone we would love to "kill", someone that everyone else views as SO WONDERFUL. Tori is in a predicament however: she doesn't believe in hurting people - she believes in peace BITCH. *L* Underlying the lyrics is the confusion one faces when one desperately wants to do something, but it conflicts with everything one stands for. A treasure!
This song, as many know now, is based on Alice Walker's acclaimed novel, "Possessing the Secret of Joy" (which I highly recommend!). It speaks of how women betray each other in patriarchal society, to save themselves, instead of uniting to overturn society's ways. And "we're sooooo good at it aren't we?", Tori points out. Tori makes one think of the more dramatic examples (female genital mutilation) to the more everyday (the way girls treat each other in high school).
Classic line from this song: "She's putting on her string-bean love". If that line isn't clear, think of how most people act when a relative or friend puts string beans on their plates.
This song has two meanings: the intended one, from Tori, and the one that many people hold to (for personal reasons, or simply because the lyrics DO lend that picture). First, Tori's version.
This song, to be blunt, is about Tori masturbating in church during services. As most of us are well aware, Tori's father is a minister. Her grandmother was also very "victorian" as Tori outs it, meaning that she held extremely conservative views about women (no sex before marriage, no sexual feelings, obey). Tori felt herself caught between wanting to please God by obeying these strict rules and her physical and emotional feelings that were being denied her. This feeling of being torn is expressed in the song.
View #2: Honestly, I didn't take the above from the song until I read in Tori's words where Icicle came from. The story I took was also quite emotional: to me, it spoke of being molested by a family monster, and needing to escape, fearing the return of the attacker. "Greeting the monster in our Easter dresses" refers to Tori's grandmother but to me, it held a more sinister meaning. "Icicle, icicle where are you going?/I have a hiding place when spring marches in" in this new light refers to dreading spring (and Easter) because that's when the molester comes to visit. Many survivors take this second interpretation, or at least relate in this way to the song. Either way, this song is most powerful.
One of the most powerful songs, and most beautiful to me. The inspiration was alluded to recently by Tori at a private intimate session on the all too brief "Venus" tour. Tori mentioned that a young man asked her to go away to Borneo with him (and no it wasn't Eric - she made that clear). But she had just gotten back with Eric, and yet a part of her knew he'd forever marked her, left an impression. Honestly, taken from this context, it sounds as though this young man quite liked by Tori -- until she discovered his ways of treating women ("Hard to hide a 100 girls in your hair"; "All the girls here are freezing cold"). To me, it speaks of deception by someone loved dearly, and wanting them to leave and take all trace of their memory. A cloud on one's tongue could mean that one wants to speak, the words are there but they don't emerge until he's gone ("He goes and it goes"). Or this may refer to her lingering feelings for him. Sad yet an underlying bitter current make this song memorable.
One of the quirkiest songs to Tori's credit (along with Agent Orange and Mr. Zebra). I've read in places that it was inspired by someone Tori saw in a diner, who was rambling, off in his own world about "space dog". To me, it speaks of the paranoia in our lives, how we see a conspiracy wherever we go. "So sure we were on something/Your feet are finally on the ground. girl" refers to (in my opinion) how sometimes when we realize how life works, we are unable to believe it. "This must be a drug-induced trip" we think.... But then we are told: "Nope. You've finally returned to earth, finally come back to reality."
This song is Tori's idea of what may have happened to Anastasia, the famous princess who disappeared and was never found (or at least, no one could prove that the girl claiming she was Anastasia was who she said). For a bit of quick history, Anastasia's entire family was killed and she disappeared that night, never to be heard from again. Impostors tried, but no one ever convinced all that she was the princess. Tori "hopes she told the story right". For me, this song is written from the point of view of the real Anastasia, returning home to claim what was hers, only to face doubts ("If you know me so well then tell me which hand I use"). It also flashes back to the loss she suffered ("We'll see how brave you are"). A tragic story woven in an unforgettable symphony of emotion.