I think I’m gonna go with Sarah on this one.
I prefer Tori’s. It’s very recognizable too.
I like both really, but Tori is nunber 1 for me 
Sarah has the better voice.
They’re both extraordinary.
Sarah’s voice is more graceful, but Tori’s voice oozes sexuality in a way that no one elses voice ever will.
Interesting malkavia, I feel almost the exact opposite.
Tori has an awesome voice. She is an amazing song writer and musician and her live show is incredible, but Sarah does the oozing in my book (that’s better than it sounds). Sarah’s voice moves me to tears like no one should.
Now, throw in Beth Gibbons and I’m just a puddle of clay in their collective hands.
I really don’t like McLachlan’s singing… I vote for Amos.
Blasphemer! [red rage]You will be made to listen to Celine Dion songs as covered by Hole for your crimes![/red rage]
I like Tori’s voice, but it’s too otherworldly for me to really love. She’s probably from Lothlorien.
I said I don’t like her singing, that’s a little different from me not liking her voice. I just don’t really like her songs.
Bjork
What?
Voice alone? Sarah.
Best songs? Tori.
Classic songs Tori-Sarah 7-1.
recounts 8-1
I think sturmhauke has the right of it… wasn’t it Neil Gaiman who said that Tori has some fairy blood in her?
Though both voices are beautiful, I find that I get more pure enjoyment out of listening to Sarah. Tori’s voice is simply otherwordly, beautiful but… disturbing in some way.
Now, for a voice that oozes sexuality, give me Kirsty Hawkshaw any day. I’ll listen to anything she sings… I just listened to an hour-long Hybrid set on BBC Radio One just to hear Hawkshaw sing one song at the end. Mmmm…
I agree with Malkavia, though I like them both a great deal. I don’t really keep up with Sarah’s career, but I was somewhat disappointed with Tori’s latest album, which has too many bland songs to my liking. Anyway, although Sarah McLachlan is probably the better singer of the two (technically speaking), Tori Amos has got the whole oozing sexuality thing going, and how can you resist that? 
I prefer Sarah.
A few years ago I used to love Sarah’s voice. Now, I’m really indifferent. And I’ve been a Tori fan for years…so Tori!
This is coming from a Tori Amos fan in the throes of a severe enough addiction that my boyfriend had to host an intervention. When he moved in, he looked at all of my CD’s, CD singles, and promotional items and said, “Got enough Tori Amos in your collection?” to which I replied (not realizing he was kidding) “No, I’ve missed a few things. And of course I’ll never get the radio promo items and some import singles.”
I don’t know for sure, but it appears that Sarah MacLachlan’s voice is classically trained. She can back it with lungpower well, sustain long notes, and it works beautifully in upper and lower registers and in higher and softer volumes. Tori appears to use her voice more for dramatic effect; she’s not affraid to be shrill or grating if it will sustain the mood, and often whispers into the mike quietly, so that her voice breaks. To me, it’s a technical thing that very much ties into the persona and the songs they put forward.
If anyone has listened to the Lilith Fair selection “The Water is Wide” with the Indigo Girls, Jewel, and Sarah MacLachlan, when it’s Sarah’s turn, the mood and emotional thrust of the hymn changes dramatically. Her lower notes have the kind of vibrato that sends shivers. I always loved her voice, but that song alone made me realize how gifted she is at controlling her instrument.
By the way, anyone who’s a fan of Tori and has attended her concerts knows that she’ll often do a cover that’s so different that it remakes the song. It’s very similar to what she did with “Smells like Teen Spirit.” Unfortunately, she doesn’t record these covers. The only way I’ve ever been able to find them is through file-swapping systems, and I hate to do that for ethical reasons. She has bootlegs available, as any artist, but I won’t buy them for the same reason. I’ve also heard stories about the quality. I saw her in concert in San Jose, and her version of “Starry, Starry Night” was transcendent. Why won’t she release these covers? Please don’t refer to Strange Little Girls. That was really a concept album.
[slight hijack] (but I love both Sarah & Tori…)
Has anyone read that Tori Amos has (in the last few years) said she was not raped after all? I read that it was to be detailed in a magazine interview a few years back - but I never got to read the article. Supposedly she still felt strongly about her work with RAINN but admitted that she herself was not raped.
Any Tori fans that can elaborate on this? I would hate to think she fabricated this. I’m hoping it was just an ugly rumor. 
[/slight hijack]
I’ll direct you to a regularly updated and accurate Tori site. They even have their own page for this question.
Thanks for the link, arachnidlove.
Hey! You know how cool that would be? Too bad Hole broke up!
I personally think Sarah has the better voice, but Tori’s the better singer. It’s sort of like, I enjoy mexican food more than I like chocolate cake. Sarah has talent but her voice is too sweet for me. Tori has more passion and exoticness to her sound.