Tori Amos vs. Bjork

QUOTES >>

"Recently I met Bjork, and she's exactly how I picture my best friend of the future. She's so free and full of wild ideas and without pose or false pretenses. Also, she doesn't have this cramped rock and roll habit to wake all sorts of demons in herself. She sees creativity wider than that. A wonderful person. I don't see her as a musician, rather like the phenomenon Bjork. I had the same feeling with Evan Dando of the Lemonheads. In my songs I am open, but I am still fighting with all sorts of problems. Bjork and Evan seem to have passed that stage. Their work is pure life's joy and childish openness. I have thought a lot about that lately: why am I still in the cellar groveling between the rats, whereas Bjork and Evan are upstairs cooking? And it smells so darn good there... I still need my songs to cope with my double cursing of feelings of religious and sexual guilt. And I would like by now to peek in the kitchen upstairs."

-- Tori; Nieuwe Revu, Feb, 1994

"I'll tell you now that there has not been one woman from a band that's turned up at my gigs. Polly Harvey and Bjork are the only women I know in the music business. I know hundreds of men in bands. And not just because they wanna get with me. There just ain't that kind of supportiveness among women in rock."

-- Tori; New Musical Express, Dec 17, 1994

I: That was big news in Australia, because Bjork just arrived in Bangkok and obviously lost her cool with a young Thai reporter who greeted her with a welcome to Thailand, and actually got hit by Bjork as she arrived.

T: Well, I don't know about that. I mean, from what I understand...and Bjork is a good acquaintance, and a lovely, lovely, lovely lady. And I've known her for a while, and never seen her lose her patience. And her son was with her, and I think that you saw the mother lion come out protecting her cub. That's what I truly think happened from what I gather. I think people saw the mother come out as Bjork, and nobody's really seen that. You see the playful, young, quote-unquote "woman", but the mother is quite, ah, powerful, wonderful and protective. And I think any mother would protect her child the same way if she felt it was being harassed.

-- Tori; JJJ FM Radio (Australia), Feb 1996

"You get to know people through other musicians. I don't meet anyone. I only run into Bjork when we're in the airport for ten minutes. We have a giggle, a scream and a laugh and go our separate ways."

-- Tori; Deluxe Magazine, May 1998

"I talk to Polly more, probably because she lives in England. We don't see each other regularly, I wouldn't say we're friends exactly. But we all definitely give each other mutual support. We have similar jobs. Tori is mag-ical, euphoric and it's enjoyable to be around her. Polly has more of an earthy quality. She's so truthful and has so much integrity."

-- Bjork; Q Magazine, Oct 2000

"The trio thing [Q Magazine interview] was 1994. It was just a magical day. I really like those two. I had met Bjork before, 10 years ago. I have huge respect for her and for Polly. I haven't seen them in while, but messages get passed back and forth. We're always in a different part of the world. Once the camera was gone, we began to see what each other was about, and in a very brief amount of time we built up a huge amount of trust."

-- Tori; Q Magazine, Nov 2001