Go
Saints!

Thursday
March 28th, 2024

fiona apple fetch the bolt cuttersELLY GRIMM • Leader & Times

 

I am constantly looking for different music to listen to while working at the office here and while on YouTube recently, Fiona Apple’s newest album “Fetch the Bolt Cutters” came up in my suggestions. So like the other albums I’ve listened to, I clicked on the playlist not knowing what to expect. Admittedly, the closest exposure I’ve gotten to Apple’s music is merely knowing it exists, I’ve never just sat down and listened to an album of hers. 

What I ended up getting is something I’m still having a bit of trouble fully understanding, but in a good way. 

The first thing to understand is the tracks on the album are more akin to lyrical and percussive poetry than songs, and while that may sound like an odd way to lay out an album, it works for “Fetch the Bolt Cutters.” The main theme of the album is about breaking out of your personal prison, and "fetching the [expletive] bolt cutters and get yourself out of the situation you’re in,” as Apple said in an interview about the album’s release. Apple also said in an interview another theme is social relationships with other women and not letting men pit women against each other in order to control the narrative. And while those overall theme might sound rather trite and cliché, the tracks themselves actually cover them in a way that’s actually mature and realistic for people instead of being melodramatic junk. 

One of my favorite songs that covers the first theme of the album  is “Under the Kitchen Table,” which is someone constantly being in an uncomfortable situation until finally boiling over even after constantly told to be quiet (i.e. frequently being ‘kicked under the table.’) This particular track is so interesting lyrically and so fitting for this time when people are finally starting to feel comfortable speaking out about uncomfortable situations they’ve been in, particularly with the #MeToo movement, so it’s a very fitting song for this era. 

One of the tracks I feel particularly speaks to the second theme of the album is called “Shameika,” which Apple said in an interview refers to a middle school classmate who told her she had a lot of potential in life. It’s great hearing a song about one person inspiring another, and it’s amazing how Apple was able to turn that experience into a rather catchy song. Another track I felt particularly spoke to that theme was “Newspaper,” which is about a woman seeing her ex after their breakup with a new partner and seeing him put the new woman down just as he did with her, making her feel sympathetic toward her. It’s very sultry and like the other tracks on the album, it’s very interesting lyrically and very powerful. 

Another particularly interesting track on the album is “Heavy Balloon,” which describes how it feels to be dealing with depression. The lyrics are fantastic and very well done and the track overall is just very striking due to the subject matter. I could also apply that description to my favorite track “Relay,” which I foresee being a single and guaranteed earworm for many people – give it one listen and I promise you’ll see what I mean. 

Something else that was done in a very interesting way was the backing drums on most of the tracks. There are many different styles experimented with throughout the album and there’s enough difference to keep you wondering what will be coming next for the listener, and the result is something very cool and very creative. There were also a couple tracks on the album that featured some extra sound effects (there’s one that ends with a herd of dogs barking and another one with what I think were dolphin sounds), which I admittedly didn’t entirely care for because I felt they took away from the songs. I also admit there were some of the drum parts I felt were super out of place with the rest of what was going on in a given song. 

I also have to give praise to Apple’s overall vocals. Her alto tone (which reminds me of a cross between ZZ Ward and Adele to a degree) is full and sultry and just perfect for each of the tracks, and you can tell while listening to the album she went full hard while putting this album together and was very passionate about the project.

Overall, even though Fiona Apple isn’t typically what I listen to musically, I actually had a fun time listening to “Fetch the Bolt Cutters” and I would give it a B-plus grade. Apple displays great talent and range with her vocals, the backing instrumentals are very creative and well done (except for a few spots, but that is up to everyone’s tastes), and the lyrics for the songs are very well written and powerful and will strike a chord with many people. If you’re a fan of Apple’s and/or a fan of this genre of pop music, there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy Apple’s newest album “Fetch the Bolt Cutters.”