Re: ho ho ho

["Xenu's Sister" <vickie@miso.wwa.com>]

On 15 May 1996, "got another 10 free hours" wrote:

> Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
> Then it gets STALE.

But you and others assume *wrongly* that Tori is trying
to imitate Kate. She's not. She can't win with you
people. If she doesn't mention Kate she's considered
a rip-off artist who refuses to cite influences. If she
mentions how much she admires Kate then she's considered
an imitator.

Long ago, I came to the conclusion that Tori's just a
personal problem with you Tori bashers. You don't like
her, which is fine, but you, for some unknown reason,
feel you have to drag Kate into it, which makes no
sense to me. They're as different as night and day,
except that they both play piano and they're both of
the same gender.

Goddess protect Happy Rhodes if she ever becomes
popular enough for you people to hear her. She *does*
sound like Kate (her high voice) and she *does* freely
admit to being a huge Kate fan, and she *will* be the
first to say that she learned how to sing by singing
along to The Kick Inside when she was a teenager. I
wonder if you'll listen to her long enough to realize
that she has her own style and is NOT trying to be, or
be like, Kate. One listen to Happy's high voice and you'll
be scratching your heads wondering why you ever thought
*Tori* sounded like Kate. But will you *hear* her music?

I'm beginning to think that some of you will never
accept any other female artist as having a valid right
to make music and sing, as long as that artist does any,
*any* little thing that's even *remotely* Kate-like, real
or imagined.

I guess that leaves Dolly Parton (oops! she sometimes uses
her high, child-like voice)...Diamanda Galas (oops! she
plays the piano)...Nona Hendryx (oops! she uses tribal
rhythms)...ok, let's see...got it! That leaves Loretta Lynn,
Kate Smith and Mahalia Jackson!

(sarcasm mode off)


Tori does *not* sound like Kate, and if you don't like
her, fine. It's not my problem. Is *is* my problem when
Tori-bashing in rmg/LH smacks me in the face (what, I'm
supposed to killfile every reference to Tori?) because
I'm a Tori fan. It *is* my problem when the Tori-bashers
make Kate fans look mean, spiteful and petty (and I feel
the same way about Tori fans who bash Kate) because that
*is* how it sounds, and I don't want to be associated.

What's so hard about leaving well enough alone? What's so
difficult about judging Tori (good or bad) *without*
bringing Kate into it...without seeing Kate behind every
vocal inflection, turn of phrase, sample and piano note?

Do you people judge *all* female vocalists that way?
Hell, Sarah McLachlan sounds more like Kate than Tori
does, and she plays piano too! (so does Happy). So, why
does Tori get more venom than Sarah? I just really believe
that it's a personal problem with Tori, and y'all just
drag Kate down with your inability to realize that Tori's
an individual with her own style. If you don't like her,
there's a very simple solution: don't listen to her. If
you ignore her, you won't have to spend so much energy
on her (which is the other thing I don't understand...why
you people go on and on and on and on and on and on about
someone you don't even like. Why not go on and on and on
and on and on about someone you *do* like? Like, oh, say,
Kate, for instance.)



Vickie

(ps, of *course* Kate is God...was there any doubt?)