I’m An Extraordinary Machine
I’m a creature of habit. I mentioned in my last post that (unconsciously) I inject Sylvia Plath into my transitional phases (which, upon reflection, makes total sense). But she’s not there alone. Fiona Apple also occupies my uneasy, unknown spaces. It was this time last year, right before my life was thrown upside down (which is saying a lot considering it was a year into the pandemic), that I was listening to Fiona Apple’s discography heavily on repeat. And I’m back at it again.
As a teenager, I was a moody, highly sensitive loner (I still am!). There were times I couldn’t stand to be around my peers because I was so susceptible to their body language and facial expressions. I absorbed their energy — and sometimes, it felt like I could read their minds. This level of attention and attunement to other people’s moods often felt like a burden. I didn’t know how to handle it. But listening to Fiona Apple’s music helped me navigate my confusing feelings. Her strange poetry was cathartic (it still is!). It felt like she was speaking directly to me, or rather, for me.
The albums Tidal (1996) and When the Pawn (1999) were huge for me as a teen. And like I mentioned on my Instagram last year, these songs lie dormant inside me until I listen to them, and then every single lyric erupts like a bubbling, burning hot volcano. But the same cannot be said for her album Extraordinary Machine (2005), which came out after I graduated from college. As a big Fiona Apple fan, I know this album well, but not with the same intensity as her older ones. It wasn’t until a recent FA binge that the title track, “Extraordinary Machine,” caught my attention. At first, this bouncy track didn’t seem like much, but after deep re-listening, it became highly resonant.
“Extraordinary Machine” is Apple’s transitional album. It’s her pivotal phase between being a ‘90s adolescent singer-songwriter to the complex experimental musician she’d become (Fetch the Bolt Cutters, 2020). Despite the drama behind the album’s production, it’s clear Fiona was discovering a new path — a path she’d be on for seven years before she reached her next destination (The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do, 2012). But those formative “missteps” in Extraordinary Machine gave us something exciting to look forward to.
Listen to Fiona Apple’s music on Spotify.
Check out the title track, “Extraordinary Machine,” below. And listen to it here.
Extraordinary Machine - Fiona Apple
I certainly haven't been shopping for any new shoes
And
I certainly haven't been spreading myself around
I still only travel by foot, and by foot it's a slow climb
But I'm good at being uncomfortable, so
I can't stop changing all the time
I notice that my opponent is always on the go
And
Won't go slow, so's not to focus, and I notice
He'll hitch a ride with any guide
As long as they go fast from whence he came
But he's no good at being uncomfortable, so
He can't stop staying exactly the same
If there was a better way to go then it would find me
I can't help it, the road just rolls out behind me
Be kind to me, or treat me mean
I'll make the most of it, I'm an extraordinary machine
I seem to you to seek a new disaster every day
You deem me due to clean my view and be at peace and lay
I mean to prove I mean to move in my own way, and say
I've been getting along for long before you came into the play
I am the baby of the family, it happens, so
Everybody cares and wears the sheep's clothes while they chaperon
Curious you looking down your nose at me
While you appease courteous to try and help
But let me set your mind at ease
If there was a better way to go then it would find me
I can't help it, the road just rolls out behind me
Be kind to me, or treat me mean
I'll make the most of it, I'm an extraordinary machine
Do I so worry you,
You need to hurry to my side?
It's very kind
But it's to no avail
And I don't want the bail
I promise you, everything will be just fine
If there was a better way to go then it would find me
I can't help it, the road just rolls out behind me
Be kind to me, or treat me mean
I'll make the most of it, I'm an extraordinary machine
If there was a better way to go, then it would find me
I can't help it, the road just rolls out behind me
Be kind to me or treat me mean
I'll make the most of it, I'm an extraordinary machine
