Greatest living tragedy? Hell no. Setting the hyperbole aside, an example of a tragedy would be an artist who never picks up an instrument. You know, wasted potential. Exile in Guyville and Whip-Smart both sold nearly a half million albums, and at least for a couple years in the mid 90s, she was basically queen of the indie/alt rock scene.
I don't know if it is compression, but I absolutely hate the ...I don't know what to call it. The particular reverb and echo that gives Soberish a distinctly unwelcome late-1990s style. I can't tell if the songs are good or not because that mix just ruins the album for me.
She had one full show last week in LA and another festival next month, both in California. Only shows since March 2020. 16 songs listed on setlist.fm. Usuals plus 2 Soberish songs, lazy dreamer from 2005 and bittersweet symphony with Lisa Loab to close. Same YT user also uploaded the duet.
Zombie thread returns again. As before, Liz Phair remains completely "not a tragedy". I didn't dig her new album that much, but its her best since the 90s. Her first three albums are all great along with the Girly-Sound collection. I enjoyed her book and look forward to the second volume.
I'm almost a little nervous to revisit Soberish, did a ton of yard work to it last summer, really enjoyed it but haven't listened since.
I think Exile is a terrific album but I never cared much for anything else she did. She released a classic album but she never really came across as a very driven musician. Compare her to another successful Matador artist of the early 90s who's around the same age: Stephen Malkmus. He has a slacker vibe about him, but it's deceptive, because he really seems to love playing guitar, writing songs, and going on tour. Might not be driven to be a huge superstar, but he's certainly driven to continue writing and playing music. I wish her the best because I think one great album is a tremendous accomplishment, but I don't think the thread title is TOO far off the mark, because it does kind of seem like she stumbled into success. And she would clearly rather play big venues and make lots of money, rather than scratch out a living on the experimental fringes. She's no Nico.
My personal opinion on why the quality of Liz's work declined circa 2005 was because she tried to morph herself into a type of artist she wasn't. The strengths of Phair's early work (the low-fi spare production, her simple but very expressive vocal, brilliant songwriting) all got tossed out for extensive production, dumbed down songs, and trained vocal delivery. Exile and Whip-Smart are classic era Phair. WSCE is also great, if overlong, overproduced, and a bit lacking in excitement. Her 2003 self-titled is one of my faves, I find myself listening to it much more than I ever thought I would. It rocks much harder than WSCE and feels more direct emotionally. I think the Matrix was a good fit for Phair, they added pop-accessibility but didn't try to change her persona or her vocal styling. Capitol Records screwed up the promotion of that record, there could have been more hits than "Why Can't I?". The S/T is a pop classic of the 2000's, IMO. Somebody's Miracle is where the wheels start coming off for me. It's telling that the album wasn't reissued on vinyl as was the rest of her catalog. The sales were lousy and honestly, the album is a mess. (the album cover is so uninspired). This is where Phair tries to transform herself in to an adult contemporary artist and the results speak for themselves. The production is all wrong for her, and it ruins the handful of great songs on the album (the title track, "Lazy Dreamer", "Table For One", "Leap of Innocence"). "Stars and Planets" works well as a pop song, it's one of the few moments that doesn't feel askew. "Lazy Dreamer" is one of her best compositions, I wish she would do an acoustic version of that track. Funstyle should have been shelved, minus "And He Slayed Her". It's a dead-end. She did seem to have a death wish with her career, veering and swerving all over the place, alienating most of her fans. I chalk it up to her being an adopted child and feeling abandoned -- a situation she subconsciously re-created with her musical audience. Soberish might be a step-up from Funstyle but not by much, IMO. She needs to go back to basics to get her career back on track.
It IS great! I hardly ever listen to her early material. She has been making very unique, hook-laden personal rock music for a long time now. I've never understood her marketing, though. She isn't Lady Gaga. She's a more articulate P.J. Harvey.
I'm spinning whitechocolatespaceegg this evening to celebrate the 25th anniversary of its release. Easily the most eclectic of her albums, and I still say all these years later that "Headache" is one of her best songs and that "What Makes You Happy" should have been a single. Exile in Guyville is still my favourite album of all time, but instead of continuing to reissue and repackage it, I really wish some attention was given to the rest of Liz's catalog. There's enough material from the WCSE era to put together a two or three disc deluxe edition.
My favorite thread returns. I'm still a fan and I'm ready for another new album, her next book, and/or a series of archival releases. Bring it on.
I've coincidentally been revisiting S/T and Soberish and continue to adore the singles and rediscover different great deep cuts - last week was "Little Digger," this week is "Dosage"
"What Makes You Happy" was slated as the second single and advertised as such. Why it was switched for "Johnny Feelgood" is beyond me. I agree it would have made a great single, even better than "Polyester Bride".
