Tori Amos: Live at Montreux 1991/1992 on Blu-ray Disc Review by Brandon A. DuHamel on BigPictureBigSound

Blu-ray Disc and DVD : Blu-ray Disc Reviews

Published: 2008-11-16 - 04:04:59

Tori Amos: Live at Montreux 1991/1992 on Blu-ray Disc Review

By Brandon A. DuHamel

The Performance

Mixing the best of Kate Bush and Elton John with nods toward Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen, singer/songwriter Tori Amos made a splash in the early-nineties with her debut album Little Earthquakes. Well, technically it was her "second debut," but I don't count the ill-conceived 1980's synthpop atrocity Y Kant Tori Read, from the Amos fronted band of the same name which also happened to consist of Matt Sorum, who would later go on to join Guns 'n' Roses. But, bad hair and cheesy electronica aside, by 1991 Amos was building up some heavy word-of-mouth both in the U.K., where her label had encouraged her to move, and stateside as a serious artist to be reckoned with.

I recall this period fondly, as I would have the opportunity to see Amos perform live at The Bottom Line in New York City's Greenwhich Village -- a night that would lead to the infamous "cocktail table incident," but that's an inside joke for close friends only. The intimate settings at the now shutdown Village nightspot were perfect for Amos with her piano on the tiny stage to sing her personal songs, with passionate vocals that I swore sounded like they came right off the studio recordings.

This Blu-ray Disc release from Eagle Rock captures Amos during that very period, 1991-1992, in two concert performances at the famous Montreux Jazz Festival, spread one year apart. During the 1991 show, before Little Earthquakes was released, it's not too difficult to sense Amos' unease with the moment, performing in front of the crowd, but her skill still shone through. Her passionate, sultry vocals and thought provoking lyrics ring through the silent crowd with great poignancy. Numbers like "Silent All These Years," "Precious Things," and "China" would gone on to become perennial favorites amongst Amos fans.

By 1992, a few months after the release of Little Earthquakes, Amos had gained a rather large cult following and garnered much critical acclaim. Emboldened by that success, her performance at the 1992 Montreux Jazz Festival was far more assertive, taking hold of her audience and her songs with authority. It seems that even her piano playing became more authoritative, displaying the flourishes of her classical training much more readily.

Both sets primarily focus on the songs of Little Earthquakes, naturally, but there are a sprinkling of cover songs, such as the beautifully played Led Zeppelin tune "Thank You" and the sullen Nirvana cover, "Smells Like Teen Spirit," both of which would go on to appear on her 1992 EP "Crucify" in studio-recorded versions. Another non-album highlight is the "Silent All These Years" B-Side "Upside Down".

The Picture

These are early-nineties high definition recordings in 1.78:1 1080i, and as such they may not be as pristine or sharp as more contemporary high definition footage, but they are still amazingly good for material captured so early in the history of high definition. This AVC/MPEG-4 transfer captures the original sources without imparting any ill effects from compression, so the picture looks very good, if only slightly soft. The black levels are not the deepest I've ever seen, but they are consistent and show minimal video noise. Amos' orange tresses truly standout, while every strand is visible. Flesh tone is rather natural and contrast is good, though a little dull looking at times. I don't think one could ask for more from such an early high definition capture.

The Sound

Three sound options are offered on this Blu-ray Disc release, DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz/16-bit) lossless, LPCM 2.0 (48kHz/16-bit) and Dolby Digital 5.1. Being that both performances are solo performances with just vocals and piano, there is not much going on in the mixes from either year, but they are well done nonetheless. The only issue with the mixes is the limited ability of the 16-bit recordings to fully capture the wide dynamic range and intonations of Amos' piano. At times there is some audible "crunching" in the sound that is indicative of many recordings in which the piano, one of the most difficult live instruments to record, exposes the limitations of the medium.

Those problems aside, the DTS-HD Master Audio mix is full of lush reverberation and just enough low frequency information in the LFE channel to give the piano a full, nearly life-like sound. Tori Amos' vocals are captured flawlessly, without any distortion, and crowd noise is kept to a minimum, particularly in the 1992 show where the fans were much more lively due to Amos' newfound recognition.

The Extras

There are no extras offered on this release.

Final Thoughts

These are two great, raw performances from Tori Amos' early years that any true fan should be hard pressed to pass on. If you are new to Tori Amos, or only know her from her more recent recordings for Sony's Epic label, then you owe it to yourself to pick up this barebones, but still strong release from Eagle Rock.

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