Evelyn Evelyn

I've been listening to the Evelyn Evelyn album since its release, and with each play, I love it more.

I'm aware of the controversy surrounding the album, and I just don't care. This project is heartfelt, and I'm getting something quite different from its meaning than the naysayers who feel that Amanda Palmer is promoting stereotypes about disabled people that keep them marginalized.

I disagree.

The key to Amanda Palmer's brilliance is less about her theatrics (even though they're lovely) and more about the way that she captures the many facets of human emotion within her songs. She's an artist who isn't mono-dimensional, and in one album, she's captured loneliness, anger, joy, compassion, love, abuse, irony... It's not always "feel good," but art doesn't have to be. It tells a story, outrageous or mundane. It paints a picture. It stirs something within. It makes you remember that you're alive and that you have emotions, both dark and light.

There are a large number of stories that show disabled people overcoming obstacles, and they're generally received positively. In my not so humble opinion, the negative reaction to this album has more to do with style than anything else. It doesn't have the subtle, room with a view in a house by a pond feeling. You can whisper, but you should never scream.