[7] years! A lot has happened in the past 7 years that could make an artist not want to come back to the spotlight, especially since that spotlight was never really the goal, all things considered. That being said, it is the perfect time for Fiona Apple to release her 4th album, The Idler Wheel is Wiser than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More than Ropes Will Ever Do. You have to be able to back a title like that up with music that packs a punch, and Fiona has that ability in spades.
Always the reluctant star, Fiona Apple has stepped back into the public consciousness with a blazing 10 song, spitfire of an album that kicks off with the music-box melody of “Every Single Night.” The song is the first single from The Idler Wheel.. and just as you fall prey to the quiet piano and gentle, almost soothing lyrics, we get the verse “The rib is a shell and the heart is the yolk/And I just made a meal for us both to choke on/Every single night’s a fight with my brain,” and you are reminded that you should never let your guard down. The second track, “Daredevil,” is a standout in an album of standout tracks, with an infectious hook and middle chorus screamed out at the top of her lungs; it’s easy to guess there is a whole lot of pent up emotion Ms. Apple needs to get of her chest. In fact, this album feels like a catharsis of sorts, with all that has happened to our musical heroine since 2005’s excellent Extraordinary Machine expelled in a dizzying whirlwind of crashing piano chords and laser-guided lyrics. The album ends spectacularly with the track “Hot Knife,” where Apple declares that she’s “A hot knife and he’s a pat of butter” as the vocal track overlaps with the chorus, while a butt-shaking drum beat dares you to not dance along (I assure you it is impossible to resist.) It is the perfect way to end an emotionally charged album.
Sure, she’s been away for a while, and other artists have stepped in to try to take her volatile throne, but The Idler Wheel… is one of the best comeback albums to be released in quite a while and it proves that Fiona Apple is not leaving us anytime soon.
Buy The Idler Wheel…
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