The following extras are from Polari’s conversation with Tori Amos in April 2009.

On the album artwork

“I love the visual side so much. It’s always been important.

I think it has grown over the years, and so being able to talk the labels that I am with into the idea of packaging is a great opportunity. I dream the dreams and then collaborate with the photographer, and the American stylist I work with, Karen Benz. She is the driving force behind all the fashion.

With these collaborative partners it’s really been about seeing the work as a whole. I don’t see the packaging as something to discard. You really need to give people information things to think about and so I’ve pulled in photographers who I respect.

I am really proud of The Beekeeper packaging. Actually I think it’s stunning. I love that side of it.

The new artwork is very much about erotic spirituality.”

On Little Earthquakes and working with Doug Morris again

Following on from Tori’s talk of the music industry, and how hard it can be for artists to get their message across, Polari asked Tori about her early years in the business and how she managed to get her message across in Little Earthquakes. Doug Morris was Tori’s mentor at the time. She worked with him again on Abnormally Attracted to Sin.

“We had just come out of Y Kant Tori read and I wanted off the record label. This is back with Doug Morris. I was just at a point where I had to claim my path. I had done that for a long time, but then I let it go in the final five miles of the marathon. After twenty-fucking-one miles.

I stuck with that Little Earthquakes. It took 4 years. And it had many amalgamations. Which is weird because so did this record.  It had so many different recordings at different times. And it’s with the same mentor. But they’re very different works.

He supported Little Earthquakes, and he said ‘be a control freak but be a good one’. I think that even though he and I battled during Little Earthquakes once he got it he really got it.

He’s a music man, a songwriter, first and that’s why we click. He talks to me about songs and about content. A lot of the lush-song-stuff came after he was on board with the new album. And this is why I think it has a lot of different sounds on it.”

More on Tash

Talking to Tori about Tash was a real joy. We all laughed a lot.

“You need people in this world that have a good laugh. My husband has a really good laugh. Tash is getting a good laugh.

Tash and I had a talk about what I could talk about to the media. So everything has been approved. Tick, you can talk about how I want good champagne, tick.

She wants it known that she really wants Michael Coors platforms size 5 because mummy will not buy them for her. I said ‘you’re gonna be like Brooke Shields in Pretty Baby’, and she said, “who’s that?”.