When The Pawn...: A-

Take a deep breath and repeat after me: "When The Pawn Hits The Conflicts He Thinks Like A King What He Knows Throws The Blows When He Goes To The Fight And He'll Win The Whole Thing Fore He Enters The Ring There's No Baby To Batter When Your Mind is Your Might So When You Go Solo. You Hold Your Own Hand And Remember That Depth Is The Greatest Of Heights And If You Know Where You Stand. Then You'll Know Where To Land And If You Fall It Won't Matter, Cuz You Know That You're Right". You've just repeated the longest record title in history, and the tile to Fiona Apple's second album. As a follow up to her striking debut Tidal, this CD impresses on just about one hundred different levels. First off, Tidal suffered alittle for it's more poetic lyricism however Apple has taken out all the stops when writing this second album. From "Limp", where she conjures justifiable, disgusting punsihment for her current lover, to "Fast As You Can", a song about the speed at which her (also) current lover should run from her and her seemingly secret alter ego, one would get the sense that she is out for blood. As always the songs are a mixture of blunt emotional trauma with a heady case of introspection and spiked with some rueful wit, it's songs as theraphy and there is no one who does it better than Ms. Apple. However there seems to be a certain maturity about her, with songs like "I Know" and "Love Ridden" popping up just before you call the loony bin. These peaceful, tranquil, tragic songs seem to balance her lunacy. Although in no way should she balance it for those of us with stronger tastes. Yes, the words can get mixed and mashed faster than you can say "Fiona did you take your Zoloft today?", but the beauty of her CD is that her own brand of (witty) insanity is never forced. It simply is, and when her dark voice exists along such perfect musical accompaniment (better even that Mike Elizondo's beats on Extraordinary Machine) that mixes a fusion of jazz, chamber pop, blues, and noir than how can you even turn away. It's one quite beautiful, complex, and twisted car wreck.