Fiona Apple is Comfortable Making you Uncomfortable in her Latest Album “Fetch the Bolt Cutters”
When Fetch the Bolt Cutters was released, I didn’t allow myself to listen until I was able to lie in my bed with my eyes closed for 51 minutes and 42 seconds uninterrupted, because that’s the undivided attention Fiona Apple’s art deserves.
Apple belongs in a league on her own. Armed with a talent to harmonize clashing melodies, layer every lyric with depth, and contort her voice like a vocal gymnast, the acclaimed veteran asserts herself against the expectations of women and artists with a self-assurance that wears years of hardship on its sleeve. In thirteen tracks, Apple composes an empowering muse for women who’ve felt like they’ve been silenced or watered down.
The album is wildly experimental and at times, sonically bizarre. It features dogs barking, pots and pans banging, and the chaotic overlapping of uncomplimentary percussion. Apple chants, screams, shrieks and contorts her voice, presenting a vivid introspection. But all this is maintained with skillful deliberation that carefully avoids crossing a fine line of being pretentious. With her raw emotion, idiosyncratic artistry, and commanding passion, FTBC is a masterpiece cacophony.
In “Under the Table,” Apple affirms “kick me under the table all you want, I won’t shut up,” describing a dinner party setting where she is kicked under the table for not being compliant and agreeable. As someone who has struggled with mental health issues that have affected her sense of self-worth, her firm disagreement is all the more inspiring. Like her provoking sounds, speaking up may not be what’s expected and it may not be comfortable, but it’s honest and necessary. The way that Apple’s bold sound mirrors her outspoken lyrics calls attention to the album’s empowering purpose.
Apple has always been introspective, and in the past, her music has been hyper-focused on her experiences of alienation. While many have related to feeling isolated and alone, FTBC maintains that trademark Apple introspection but emphasizes the shared experience of womanhood, offering a sense of belonging in our shared experiences. In the mid-way track “Ladies,” Apple offers her hospitality to the next woman who comes along in her ex’s life, telling them to help themselves to the things she left in his cupboards. “Ladies, ladies, ladies, ladies,” she addresses as if breaking up a fight — and she is, destroying the internalized misogyny that results in women turning against each other to gain validation from men.
In a similar vein, in “For Her”, Apple threatens that men must be held accountable for their actions, and stresses the importance of female solidarity. The abundance of voices layered in harmony creates an antagonizing chorus, uniting women together in their shared trauma. She mocks the perpetrator by repeating “you don’t know what you did” and then abruptly confronts him a haunting “good morning,” before she exposes his abuse. “Newspaper,” carries on this message, and the motif of solidarity through vocal harmonies, as Apple grapples with the fact that men will demonize their ex-lovers to keep women in competition with each other.
In one of her most memorable tracks, “Shameika”, Apple delves deep into her adolescent experience, reminiscing about the impact of bullying, and how one girl’s encouraging words stuck with her. The importance of female solidarity starts in childhood, with girls uplifting girls, and this anecdotal narrative packed with nimble word play and schoolyard imagery was a compellingly unique way to get this message across.
FTBC is an artistic masterpiece that consistently points back to a powerful conclusion, and the thesis of the album: Speak up for yourself and other women. “Fetch the Bolt Cutters” is a call to action.
