Best known for hits like “Criminal”, Fiona Apple has put out some truly memorable art pop music from the 1990s onward. However, plenty of her works are still sorely underrated. Let’s take a look at just a few songs that I think prove that Fiona Apple is an underrated musical genius!
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1. “I Want You To Love Me”
This 2020 hit breathed new life into Fiona Apple’s career and proved that decades after she first hit the scene, she’s still got it.
A standout opener from Fetch The Bolt Cutters, “I Want You To Love Me” is a painfully relatable song about a notion that isn’t really explored in music. Apple wants to will a relationship into reality. She goes through a sort of therapy session throughout the song that ends in perfect clarity about what she wants and who she is as a person. The piano track on this song is similarly chaotic and punctuates Apple’s poetry beautifully.
2. “Cosmonauts”
Another incredible song from Fetch The Bolt Cutters, “Cosmonauts” is underrated in the context of the whole album. Apple knows how to write a song that is almost claustrophobic and exhausting yet still unbelievably beautiful and relatable. This song is more or less Apple’s internal monologue about a long-term relationship.
3. “Periphery”
Fiona Apple is a genius in many ways, one of which is her fearlessness in her criticisms of the music industry. She famously called the music industry “bullsh*t” when accepting an award in 1997, after all.
The 2012 song “Periphery” reaffirms that she’s not interested in convention. Apple croons about a man who decides to take the easy way out instead of spending his life with her, and there’s something about “Periphery” that is both sensual and anxiety-inducing.
4. “Fast As You Can”
This song was a decent hit for Apple back in 1999. “Fast As You Can” is a chaotic blend of uncomfortable piano melodies and a stressed-out percussion, which suits the warning Apple gives beautifully: She’s crazy, and men just seem to manic pixie dream girl-ize her before they really grasp her instability. It’s a stellar middle finger to the world, complete with a unique 6/8 time signature.
5. “Ladies”
Fiona Apple is a genius for exploring concepts that have traditionally been considered taboo or uncomfortable. In “Ladies”, Apple admits that she has more or less seen women as a mirror for her own insecurities, as well as her strengths. It’s a playful yet serious and direct piece of work that anyone can relate to. The message behind “Ladies” is something that some women could really stand to hear.
Photo by Chris Canole/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
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