Well, she's ticked off about something

"Harbinger" was just what it said it was. It announced the approach of the following, brilliant cd "This Fire". Don't get me wrong, "Harbinger" is brilliant, but "This Fire" is so much more.

'Bethlehem' started to focus the direction of Paula's anger, towards a society that refuses to understand, the outsider viewing a despicable corrupt society, in this case from the perspective of an unhappy time at school. 'Tiger' picks this right up, but adds some lyrical twists of infinite beauty: "look at the tiger jumping out of her mouth". You must have seen the paintings by Dalí of tigers leaping out of incongruous objects, such as a mouth. She evokes the subconscious urges of surrealism in her lyrics, voicing the repressed passions of her life: "I can finally be a teenager at age 26". It is a cry of anger against society in large, the society that grinds her and her passions and obsessions down, in pure Lorca style. The influence of surreal art is clear.

The hit single 'Where have all the cowboy's gone?' is a feminist statement, attacking the sexual exploitation of women. Her vocals are hushed and suggestive, a one-off in her music, directed at her husband. The chorus sees her breaking out of this suggestive facade and all-out assaulting man. By the end of the story, the only thing that the man is good for is paying the bills, and drinking beer, pure feminist thought. More early century influences, shows Paula Cole staking a claim to artwork and social criticism.

'Throwing stones' is more of the same, but fails musically, as the discordant piano is too jarring, however appropriate it may be. 'Carmen' is a beautifully hushed ballad, where Paula's vocals show their beauty and subtlety, after the assaulting scream of the first tracks. 'Mississippi' is a highly effective song, with immensely powerful vocals, travelling from unshakable fortitude to immense fragility. 'Nietzsche's eyes' is another slow ballad where Paula's vocals take off. 'Road to dead' is a good pop-rock song, followed by the introspective 'Me'. This is the persona of Paula Cole revealing herself: "I am not the person who is singing, I'm the silent one inside". This is the individual which society restricts, and who longs to be free, but she realises too that she is as much to blame as society: "And it's me who is my enemy... me who makes the monsters". She is the one who has been unable to adapt to society, and 'Me' does not known whether to blame society or the self. Both appear to have failed. This is Paula's most personal moment, baring her soul. 'I don't want to wait' is a joyful conclusion to the cd, as if she has found peace is the beauty of the world, a beauty which 'Tiger' could never have accepted.

"This Fire" warns you in the liner notes to turn the volume up, and let it take you on a trip. The trip is Paula's own, her struggle against inner inadequacy and social decay. She finds meaning by the end, after anger, introspection and suffering. A masterpiece of sound and word.