Kill The Radio Star

Just when I start to think that emusic has begun to outlive its usefulness for me, I stumble upon an entire discography of awesomeness and decide that emusic ain’t so shark-jumping after all. Case in point: Jill Tracy. She’s like a dark Little Earthquakes-era Tori amos, a less effed-up Fiona Apple and a less-prone-to-screaming Amanda Palmer all rolled into one. That is to say, she can play the living hell out of a piano, write a darn good song, AND do both while steering subject matter toward poisoning people, armageddon, and disembowelment. What is not to love? While every album is a best-of, I will attempt to limit myself to 3 songs per album. (But, for real….listen to the rest of the albums.)

Album: Quintessentially Unreal
- “Between The Black”: Jaunty, torchlight piano provides a background for this collage of antonyms.
- “Hour After Hour”: Tight piano-playing, mixed with a tasty chorus that namechecks Pavlov.
- “You Kill Me”: More jaunty fun, written from the p.o.v. of the lover you love to hate.

Album: Diabolical Streak
- “The Fine Art of Poisoning”: The title is pretty self explanatory, and the piano and strings plod lighty like a snuggly cat that’s entered a nursery to smother a baby.
- “Pulling Your Insides Out”: Unexpected quasi-Beatnik jazz that builds to the chorus “it’s worth the pain, when they’re pulling your insides out.”
- “Evil Night Together”: Sly swing full of possible murderous alternatives to dinner & a movie.

Album: The Bittersweet Constrain
- “Torture”: Cry for mercy, paralleling unrealized desires and…well, torture. Bonus points for the bit about Chinese water torture.
- “Sell My Soul”: Deal with the Devil, or love song?
- “In Between Shades”: Vocals are particularly Tori-esque (in a good way) in this ditty punctuated by a chorus of “let’s pretend we’ve got this world on a string, like we promised we would.”