Reviews (page 2 of 8)
Much like learning the other day the difference between The Hives and The Vines (and how much I actually liked the Hives) with this album I learned the enormous difference between Liz Phair and the Indigo Girls. In that, they are completely different in pretty much every way. Particularly in how much I enjoyed Liz Phair and wish I had been introduced to her sooner.
A great debut, and a really good representative of the 90s. The lyrics make her stand out.
liked this one will listen to it a bit more
A debut for the ages. She screams the quiet parts. Incredible.
ughhh the audacity of this
Just terrible
Hole, but boring.
Pitchfork loves to drool over this one. It's fine and all, not really more than that. Like an album of the weaker Hole songs. Some interesting stuff on here, but it's all very par for the course for 90's Alternative music. I do like her voice, I like some of the instrumentation on here, but I don't really get grabbed by the lyrics and the whole thing just doesn't do that much for me.
pretty cool
The Good: Guyville getting a little estrogen! The Bad: That the lady feels like she's exiled... The Ugly: Fucking deportation from Guyville... What? Liz Phair... I'd heard of her back in the day... I'd not listened to her. Now I have. I liked it. Loads of strong lyrics that show a woman can be sexual too... then you read what she says in interviews, and that this is not her being all sexual, and all of a sudden the boobies on the album cover just don't feel the same... what? Anyway, did enjoy the album... so good on Liz! 4*
Bland and boring for the most part, just like the pixelated nipple in the album cover it needed more showing. Best track- ‘fuck and run’ was fun. Worst track- ‘canary’ Forgetful 3/10
Liz Phair It was.....alright. First couple of tracks flattered to deceive as the general standard dropped away after that. Don't get me wrong there was still other tracks I enjoyed - Fuck and Run got repeated a couple of times, and the off-kilter Canary grabbed my attention. But it all passed me by to easily and would have been much better cut to half the number of songs. Best Track - Fuck and Run Worst Track - Strange Loop 6/10
Pretty iconic record tbh. Big deal in indie rock and still grabs my attention. It’s maybe a bit long and I don’t love every song but an essential indie rock record that surprises and delights 30+ years later.
Sounds like the background noise I love but with substance
Rare to hear a woman singing in such a low register. Props to Phair – her material sounds completely different from other contemporary artists, despite sharing a lot of genre elements. Also unusual are the consistently short track lengths – an attribute very rarely seen past the 70s – possibly hearkening back to punk or 50s/60s rock. 6'1" had me worried that this would be another song about silly dating standards, but actually it's a pretty cleverly delivered message about standing up to patriarchy. I enjoy the guitars, the connections to grunge rock, the interesting melody and chords. Glory is an immediate standout for Phair's hasty, low, hushed performance. And she squeezes a heck of a lot into just 89 seconds. Less of a fan of Dance Of The Seven Veils; though I understand the lyrics are a reference to the dance of the same name, but I do wish she would stray into territory other than just overtly hating men. Never Said gives me exactly what I asked for: a poppier grunge-rock anthem that speaks to the universal experience of rumours. Great wall-of-sound texturing too, helped out by the ever-present backing vocals. Soap Star Joe, particularly its melody, reminds me intensely of something the Indigo Girls might have recorded around the mid-90s – I have to imagine the two artists influenced each other. I like the mood of Explain It To Me. Soft, hopeful, with a mantra-like repeated guitar line. Around the point of Mesmerizing, I do start actively wishing there were some more active percussion. And again, Phair grants me my wish. Kind of. There are shakers and a brasher, more rhythmic electric guitar part, very Nirvana-esque. Fuck And Run is very explicit about what Phair's looking for (that being: the opposite of the song's title). Again, speaks pretty dang well to the masses. ("I can feel it in my bones / I'm gonna spend another year alone." Yeah. I feel you, Liz.) I'm surprised some of these tracks aren't more popular. Not a fan of Girls! Girls! Girls!, a song that walks in circles for a couple of minutes without presenting any interesting musical ideas. Having been placed after the relatively low-energy Fuck And Run, this song is in an unfortunate place. Divorce Song picks up the energy a bit, again sort of channelling Amy Ray/Indigo Girls energy. Shatter is a super interesting case in that it takes a good 150 seconds – almost half of the fairly long song – to get to the first lyrics. I'm not quite sure how I feel about the song – again it marks a lull in elements that are actively interesting – but then the lyrics are pretty powerful and follow the album's theme without going overkill. I place it somewhere just shy of being genuinely good. Gunshy, a few tracks later, is much the same. Some highlights from that final region of the album include Flower, Johnny Sunshine, and Strange Loop – though again sorely missing the percussion and bass that would easily make this album pop. 3/5 Key tracks: 6'1", Never Said, Fuck And Run
Liz Phair displays various different flavors of rock on this album ranging from indie, folk, punk, and pop. The album is defined by its unique sardonic edge that permeates every track, whether via Phair's cynical lyricism and singing or the subtly discordant guitar playing. My favorite track was "Mesmerizing".
Liz Phair displays various different flavors of rock on this album ranging from indie, folk, punk, and pop. The album is defined by its one of a kind sarcastic edge that permeates every track, no matter if it’s through Phair's cynical lyricism and singing or the subtly discordant guitar playing. My favorite track was "Flower".
Well, Exile In Main Street is a stinking heap of sexist shit, but I'm not sure that a female response was necessarily needed. Fair play to Liz for trying. I've given several rap albums low scores for being sexually explicit and demeaning to hos. Is it different for women to take those themes and run with them, as Liz does? It's empowerment v exploitation, n'est-ce pas? Or is it equally bad for a woman to sing about what she wants to do with hot men? As a man, it doesn't bother me. Does the explicit sex talk on a Notorious BIG record bother women? I thought it might, but maybe it doesn't if the sex is consensual. I dunno, I quite often get the impression with rap albums that the sexual desire isn't necessarily two-way and is therefore exploitative. I dunno... Musically, it fits with the Matador aesthetic of the time. I loved artists like Helium and Cat Power, but never got into Liz. My bad. This is a decent album which I would happily listen to again.
I'm going to be vulnerable and admit I had a knee jerk negative reaction to Liz Phair. And in fact, this album is very good.
No entiendo porqué tanta faramalla... No le entendí :(
another one of those "classic" albums which is important within the grand history of music but is relatively boring or uninteresting coming into it fresh these days. its fine. i have no idea what the fuck key she sings in in the first track though. unironically i prefer funstyle
Excellent album, never heard before, certainly a v welcome listen !
Not really my jam can't get past the singing place
I've listened to this album a few times before. I recall enjoying it, but this is a good way to refresh my memory on it. I like this album, but I think I would love it if the vocals were a little more refined. It's a bit too sloppy and pitchy in a lot of places.
I think the songwriting and tone of this albums were great. Reminded me bit of Hole just better. With this being a little bit over an hour long I was still sad when it was over. This was a killer album 5 stars.
there is nothing redeeming on this entire album
17 year old me approves.
Her voice isn't great but it reminds me of Courtney Love's so maybe it was just 'of the time'.
Surprises around every corner, angry and youthful, more sophisticated and gentle in other parts.
This is an 18 song album that is full of the same, nice.
nah
I love this album. It gets stuck in my head for days after a listen.
So, I am not a fan of The Rolling Stones EXILE ON MAIN ST, so it makes sense to me that Liz Phair's EXILE IN GUYVILLE also does nothing for me. It also makes sense to me why her music never entered my sphere during the 90s. Though I can see why it became one of the anthem albums of the Riotgrrls. I find both of those albums to be such ridiculous caricatures of the sexes (like listening to teenagers screaming past one another) that neither one of them appeals to me in lyrical content or musical genre. I am also not a fan of lo-fi bedroom rock. And personally I find Phair's lack of vocal quality to be a bit annoying and the arrangements are bland and beige, so I'd rather listen to Tori Amos, or a handful of other more creative feminist rock acts from the 90s who might or might not have the snarl, but have the vocal talent and arrangement talent. Kids, when people refer to angsty 90s coffeeshop music this what they mean. Now, if you are a big fan of one of these albums, or even both, more power to you, it is not what I am looking for in music. So, in my world, neither one of them are essential to any list. "Flower" was funny in a puerile way.
Too much bloat, if it got cut down this could’ve been a much better album.
3,6
Was a good album
Sympa
C'était pas si mal mais je trouve que l'album est loooooooong
The highs on this album are great (Never Said, Fuck And Run) and theres other good moments, but a fair proportion of it feels a bit underproduced for me. Lots of Liz and her guitar with fairly minimal backing, which gives it that 'recorded in my bedroom' feel, although a lot of the songs deserve a lot more than that. There's plenty to pick through in the lyrics, with a refreshingly rude approach at times, but the delivery prevents true engagement at times.
My brother introduced me to the music of Liz Phair back in the 90s. Her voice, both literally and figuratively, reminds me of that time. I've listened to Whitechocolatespaceegg more than this one over the years.
Love some of these. Some are boring, but overall good.
It's Feminist Rock music, and the lyrics are just as relevant as they were 33 years ago. I appreciate the album for that much alone. With that being said, it's not the most exciting album. It's just not something I plan on revisiting. Favorite Track: "6'1"(and not just because this is my height).
Would have gone so hard if I was a 14 year old girl
I understand the appeal but not my cup of tea. Some really weird, horny lyrics and forgettable songs but to be fair there were one or two good ones.
cool feminist
I can see what it's trying to do, but it doesn't quite land for me. Possibly I am not the intended audience, I've never been hot, let alone a hot mess.
8/5/26. Finally listening to this! I've heard Liz Phair is somewhat of a Chicago legend in the alternative scene; I didn't expect a decent amount of quieter songs, which balanced out the heavier, angsty songs. Consistent album throughout and will need to check out again.
It sure hits the indie grunge/feminist alt scene perfectly. At first, it's rawness seems like a downside and then it starts to rather show its strength. Almost has a early folk punk vibe
Aside from a mild boyhood crush spiced by the knowledge that Liz Phair would annihilate me, her music teassures me with the vague impression that I’ve been better off without her. Still, kind of good album.
I have this fantasy of having a one night stand with Liz and her then writing a brutal song about it. It would be called something like ‘Pathetic’ or ‘I’d Be Disappointed if I Cared’ or ‘Little White Jelly Bean’
2/5 Favorite Song: Shatter
She’s so angry! She’s so horny!
This album is nice, even some songs are good. And, honestly, I should have loved it. But it feels soulless for me, there are no interesting songs in here, nor captivating melodies. It is just a bunch of songs that feel pretty bland and insipid. And, I repeat it, technically, I should have really liked this album, this kind of folky, soft rock with a popish side, that plays with being alternative, or indie, but that really works well with other singers like Meredith Brooks, who, without being that interesting as a songwriter, really delivers songs that are funny enough to forget how intense sometimes this music can try to be. And, maybe, that is the issue with this album, it feels too pretentious as it goes on that it becomes irritating and even tedious to listen to. Some songs are just very long and tiring, with a very mellow and dark sound that does no good for them. It is not that they need to be mainstream or more popish, but they need to be, at least, interesting if they do not seek to be enjoyable. The music in this album does not flow well, and some songs feel like demos or unfinished ideas. Some are nice, sure, but just being repetitive and monotonous all over every single song makes this album lose any kind of interest as the songs go on. And, none of them is memorable either.
1.56
An okay album, I liked Help Me Mary and Glory the most.
Well, what can I say? She can't sing and the music is very basic. I thought I was at an 'open-mike night' down at the local pub. Apparently her greatest hit is 'Why Can't I?'. it's all about talent my dear. In your case it's all about the lack of talent.
I remember when someone slipped me Liz Phair in a mixtape. It was supposed to be so… risqué (giggle giggle.) But even then, it felt like hearing from that friend who calls you up so she can talk at you. No conversation. She needs a captive audience. This happened, and that. This person is trying to f* her over. AND she’s sleeping with this guy. But his friend wants to f* her too. Yeah. Even the dissonance and purposely flat delivery feel like she’s telling me, “see, I’m making art. THIS is ART, b*!” 3 Boolean: True- yeah, whatever Rolling Stone
90's gurls rock rocks
Maybe I am slighltly dissapointed here in myself as this was supposed to be groundbreaking debut album from a singer discussing feminist issues. The problem is - it is very bland, bording and just musically uniniteresting, not interesting enough to even focus on the lyrics so I am afraid no more than 2 stars.
5/10
This was fine when there was drums and boring when there wasn't.
The first few bars of track 1 were great, I was lookign forward to the rest of the album. Then it just went to shit, very quickly. Her vocals were painful and completely ruined every track. Then the music actually got worse too. About half way through I finally decided that enough was enough and turned it off. Even the quarter-areola on the album cover couldn't save it.
This is another major classic that I just never carved out the time for but it lives up to its excellent reputation and is just a pleasure to listen to.
This seems very rooted in the '90s and I can see how it influenced a lot of really good later artists. I like it but I don't love it. I'm probably not the Target demographic that would love this album though. Fuck and run is pretty great.
I was excited to listen to this one. Kept having to listen in fragments, so my experience was interrupted. I feel like it would be best heard in one sitting. Still liked it, but I need to listen to it more.
This is the debut release by American indie singer Liz Phair. She sings in an almost monotonous, expressionless voice about sexual themes in a typical indie sound of this time. It may well be that the lyrics were the deciding factor in her inclusion on this list. I don't care for this kind of music; it doesn't appeal to me, nor does it draw me in the way other music—even music previously unknown to me—might. You can listen to it—it’s not painful—but that’s about it.
pretty great ! n depressing
pesimo
very much a landmark album for what came after which i loved. due to that it is missing a bit of the sauce. good project nevertheless
You know, not really a big fan of this one bit. The whole album seems like it is more dull compared to a "masterpiece". The raw "lo-fi" sound with her boring vocals gives me nothing, and I really have no desire to explore the lyrics due to that.
Parts of it feel quintessential 90s. Parts I don’t like. Wouldn’t listen again but was nostalgic
I’m not sure I’m the intended market for this, but is brilliant. Confrontational, powerful, and personal I can’t think of a record like it.
few bangers here
hey, this is really enjoyable
i would hate to be exiled there
I really liked this one! Added “Shatter” to my playlist.
Never heard a note before today. Feels of an era (90s, when I found most new music to be wanting) but also as though she's a member of a group of women in pop and rock that are freakin' talented - Alanis, Cindy, Fiona, PJ, Tracy - and I missed her along the way somehow.
it’s got a great clean sound, is consistent and adventurous, and is also bold and confessional — what’s not to love? Also hugely influential on artists like Courtney Barnett and Phoebe Bridgers.
Nice slice of angsty nineties energy
4 stars for the music, 1 additional star for badassery.
Love this and was recommended to me previously. Great lyrics, raw and unbothered vocals, easy to listen
Interesting
I'm a sucker for these indie guitar tones and her lyrics are quite witty, so this was very enjoyable for me.
Девочка громкая, ничем не выделяющаяся
Better overall than I expected. Standard Liz Phair sound but a good album
Классный, атмосферный альбом, очень приятный и летний. Настроение у него такое, молодежное, меланхолично-позитивное, если так можно сказать. Очень ностальгическое звучание.
Each of these songs are fine mellow little songs in their own right, but I really did not 75 minutes of it. Give me one song every once in a while instead of all of them at once
I mean it's ok. I can see how people might enjoy it. The social commentary is good, but the music just isn't for me.
It's a very interesting album in it's writing and themes, but the performances for most of the record are really grating.
I sadly didn't like the vocals. But it felt okay for playing in the background.
Not exactly what I gravitate towards but the album does touch on certain double standards and woman’s issues which was quite eye opening
I love feminist chick rock
I need to spend more time with Liz Phair because I think her stars would rise, but she hasn’t really grabbed me yet. I like her vibes and style but she leaves me wanting something more. I’m not sure what.
i like the style of this i just think it gets a bit boring after a while!
I listened to this years ago and didn't get it. Now, I enjoyed it. Also, shoutout to the Rainbow Club for having the photobooth this album cover was taken in.
Knowing that every song is a response to a song on Exile on Main Street by The Rolling Stones really adds a layer to this album. At the very least, it's something to separate her from the wave of Morissettes and Apples and Loves and whatnot that were making the same kind of music around the same time. I also love whatever you call this kind of music. Everyone in this scene had such a biting sense of humor and it's great to see how much of it made it onto the list. It's refreshing to get albums like this after a lot of the most male-focused music on the list so far, as much as I love Motörhead and Megadeth.
As a debut album this is pretty tight. The attitude and message is the core of what helps this have some sticking power. Cool album. I don't think I got from what it what some people find but it was worth hearing.
A good example of the pop rock sound of the time. I was not familiar with this, but if it had caught me in the 1990s it might of had more of an impact on me. Great track lengths.
Kind of repetitive and samesy I don't think I enjoyed that very much. I would have liked this more when I was younger in my emo phase - but even then some of the lyrics were just not for me lol.
Not the worst album this week. But not the best either.
New artist to me. The songs didn't hold my attention, nor the angsty lyrics.
This was on the Rolling Stone 50 greatest concept albums i listened to a couple of years ago. It still doesn’t do anything for me.
A troubadour for the grunge era. There's not a lot to dislike, but there's not a lot to really like either. 3*
Could have been way worse, found the lyrics confessional yet funny. The singer's lyricism and delivery are very compelling.
Not bad; but dated, and quite samey. I'd listen again, however I've already forgotten all the songs as none of them really stood out.
Those lyrics! I enjoyed this album a lot. She's got a great voice, the instrumentals were solid - I see why people still talk about this album.
Felt like a teenage girl’s diary. There are parts that are pretty good. It’s got that edginess that I like, but it’s just the lack of other instruments to me that make it sound very narrow. No fault of the artist really as it’s more of a stylistic choice.
Interesting. You can tell she is trying to push herself.
I know the name Liz Phair, but I don't think I had ever listened to her music before. It feels so very 90's, i thoroughly enjoyed it.
not much of a singer. lyrics writing is decent but instrumentals are very nothing.
So back in the 90's we had coffee shops owned by people, not corporations, and they would play all kinds of music but would tend to be acoustic guitar, singer songwriter types usually with meaningful lyrics. It was because the folks working there tended to be college age, and listened to alternative radio. Music there was not radio pop. Also in the late 80's early 90's there was a movement against pop radio and corporate owned media that exploded when kids discovered Nirvana on Mtv. Yeah. We saw the irony of this as well. Enter Liz. She wasn't the first to do this, wasn't the last by a long shot. She proved to a lot of people that you didn't have to be a pop princess to sell a lot of albums. It grabbed the attention of a lot of us and we all bought the album. It's a good touchpoint album for the time. A lot of the lyrics still hold true sadly. It's one of those albums that makes me wish the list was in chronological order. You could see how culture moved over time via music. Not sure how well this would be received now. I'd be interested in seeing the younger generation listen to this one.
Love it
I have never heard of this album or this artist and was pretty prejudiced when I saw it pop up today. I gotta say though, really impressed. There's something really intriguing about her voice and how flat and deadpan it is. I read through a couple reviews and everyone seems to be critiquing it and saying she cant sing, but she really hits the notes that compliment the music. It's got a charming quality and I enjoyed listening through it. This album reminds me of life after I left college to go live on my own in a big city away from the world I knew and grew up in. I moved to Kansas City after living pretty rural and experienced some pretty severe culture shock. People of all colors, creeds, and beliefs living aside one another trying to do what makes them happy and keeps them and their loved ones alive. I remember going down to the Power & Light district to see a concert and it was my first experience with street corner prostitutes and the lengths people are willing to go to to make ends meet. I was single for years in KC and experiencing all that is what this album sounds like. Raw, uncut, unfiltered, trying to do something to shine a little brighter than the rest. It's a real treat and has me nostalgic for that life. I don't live there anymore and have moved away but think of those years occasionally acknowledging how much it changed my perspective on people and living this life alongside them. This album is going to get a 8/10 from me because it bubbled up some emotions and memories I hadn't thought about in years.
3.5
Yeah, I gotta agree with most of the reviews I read… good tunes, interesting lyrics,… but why can’t she stay in tune or on time with her singing? I wanted to like it more.
hmm the weather is too hot to thiink about a reason for the 2 stars
Super cool album. Every now and again this list throws something at me which I'm surprised that I've not heard of. This is one. She exists in a genre and era of music that I enjoy, I'm familiar with a lot of her contemporaries, but never come across this. It's great. And it's not just rebellion without substance, it's all there.
Good vocals. Lyrics seem like there's anger under the surface.
Not my thing too much cheesy
She has an interesting voice and is an interesting voice….. by not way is she a technically gifted singer but there’s a grit and energy that captures you. Her voice is a genuine vehicle for her songs…. And the songs well they are bare and exposed. Almost aggressively emotionally transparent. The stripped back lunatic suits the emotional honesty. There’s nowhere to escape the words
Pretty sure some of these songs were written (and maybe demos recorded?), in my old bedroom. Either way, phenomenal debut that still smokes.
weird
Not for me. 1/5
Pretty important 90's rock record and quite moody too, despite how flat Liz Phair can sound at times. She's pretty damn brash and honest all throughout; whether it's of heartbreak, sexual desires, or just overall angst.
this is something rory and lane would listen to
This is a trancendent album for some, and I can't help but mention it because to me, it's good — great in places — but never quite there. Impressive collection of four-track (right?) recordings. Phair is original and raw, though it does blend together — 18 is a lot of songs, especially with limited production. Anyway, I really put this at a 3.5.
I have three all-time favorites: Beatles Revolver, Joni Mitchell Blue, and this one. It's one of those albums where every song has been my favorite at one time or another, though Shatter has been my favorite for a while now. I'm traveling, so I can't rhapsodize about this in as much depth as I want to, but it's beautiful and haunting, lo-fi but well-produced, sparse yet packed with stunning touches, and it's honest and perfect, and I never get tired of hearing it. I'll never stop thanking my buddy Jeff for turning me on to this gem.
Deeply and lovingly familiar with album. Liz Phair just blew my mind when this hit. Other women in rock that I liked just didn’t have her edge. She showed us how it could be done. And she’s still doing it. Jen and I saw her a couple years ago and she’s still rocking in that iconic way. (I still don’t understand the song by song response to the Stones’ Exile)
2.5
Not bad! 3.5/5
Didn’t listen to this again. Ex girlfriend was obsessed with Liz Phair. It’s a good album, yes. But I’ve heard it sooooo many times in my life
The writing isn't bad, very honest and straightforward, at least in terms of getting a feeling across (since Liz Phair says she was making up POVs and experiences while writing). I can't super relate to everything going down, I feel like I'm the exact opposite kind of person that she is or at least was in 1993 and that's okay too. I think I'm understanding that it's pretty charged with non-innuendo stuff about sex and the nature of relationships between men and women, or just two people really. Could apply to all manner of romantic relationships which all have their own different sociopolitical contexts to address. But it doesn't really speak to me beyond recognizing the general heart-on-sleeve style of writing, and I think that's my own inability to relate to what's going on here.
There's a bunch of divorced dad rock on this list but this is my first instance of divorced mom rock!! Wild. Honestly not bad. Love the unabashed feminism that shines through each track - this feels like an album that influenced many after it. My biggest hangup is that at times it feels like this weird mix of melodic spoken word, which isn't my favorite. I can understand why this made the list. Highlights: Shatter, Johnny Sunshine
Alweer een week geleden dat ik deze luisterde, maar wat me bijstaat is dat hij best beviel. US 90s alt rock in een hele typische vorm, maar misschien daarom ook wel raak. Niet echt iets opgeslagen, maar de algehele sleur was best aanstekelijk. 7/10
Deze Liz Phair plaat is eigenlijk best vet en nogal suf op hetzelfde moment. Hiervoor kende ik haar nog niet, maar deze debuutplaat staat best hoog aangeschreven. Ik hoor de bekende 90's Amerikaanse indiesound, en daar houd ik wel van. Goeie associaties, zoals met Fountains of Wayne, Dandy Warhols, etcetera. Maar tegelijk vind ik haar stem niet echt interessant en zit er geen enkel nummer tussen dat mij echt grijpt als dikke alternative track. Daarin blijft het nogal flauwtjes allemaal. 6/10
This record gives me heavy 90’s/00’s Morrisey vibes- the production of course, the vocals are kinda bad and sound like genuinely 90% of the ladies in the 90’s during that smoker mom music arc. Idk man, it’s basically a worse “Tuesday night midnight club” by Sheryl Crowe imo.
Someone really hurt Liz 6’1” is the start to a this breakup album one that is in the myst of the grunge movement and building on everything Cyndi Lauper and even Joni Mitchell has built. Men have really hurt this woman. Maybe I am crazy but this is 100% Olivia inspo. Fuck and run is exactly the type of music that feels so novel a concept so juvenile and I love it some of the guitar and instruments are so dreamy and loud it’s a tru rebel album and it ends so epically. Talk about liberating and freeing. A lot of the female artist seem like They have to really bring it so much mediocre guy shit compared to women for sure anyways anyways amazing record which such a great concept female manipulator music is awesome empowering and metal af
I really wanted to like this because I know it’s legendary but I found it kind of whiny and annoying. She sing talks more than actually sings and it’s pretty bad. (2)
Pas emballée
Started off strong, but it got boring quick. Anything that wasn't repetitive just didn't have much substance at all. Couple good singles, but it doesn't hold up as an album.
Some songs are really good, others are fine. The album as a whole gets boring at times. I think the best songs elevate the album, though.
All of these songs sound the same and are just so blah AND the album is soooooo long. This was not a good rainy Monday morning at work listen.
It's funny: I've heard songs from this album, but never connected them to her 2003 album (not that I heard anything besides the singles from that one either). I wouldn't have expected them to be the same artist, but I haven't paid enough attention before to notice. It's an interesting evolution. This album hits more squarely for me, with its clear early 90s sound.
favs: 6'1, glory, mesmerizing
330/1089 quite liked this indie rock girlie moment and will definitely have to go back to it. i really liked her sound and energy faves: shatter, never said, strange loop 76/100
Not my thing. Found the voice quite annoying after a while. Sounded exactly like the 90s it is from.
this eats. if i had hear this like 6-7 years ago it woulda been a 5 for me.
Just a really solid album. I like the raw lo fi production and the songwriting is great too Fav tracks: Shatter, Explain It to Me, Canary, Divorce Song, Never Said, Fuck and Run
I enjoyed it, there were some 90s alt rock songs on there but it went a bit left field which took me by surprise
a solid 3.5 liked the vibes
Unique storytelling and fun alt strummin. She takes risks. Doesn't sound like anybody else at the time but also fits right into the pantheon of early-90s alt rock bands. Really good.
No. 217 At first it was nothing special to me but it kind of grew on me.
A lovely album about negotiating crappy relationships in your twenties The 2018 remaster on spotify doesn't do it justice. I prefer the denser, hissier, lo-fi version on my old tape.
Wasn’t familiar with Liz Phair or this album before, but really enjoyed it - a strong 4 for me
I think of Alanis Morissette when I hear this. Maybe it's familiarity bias, but I prefer Alanis.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ maybe ⭐️⭐️1/2 I actually didn’t mind this record, but didn’t find too much that I think I’ll come back to or that’ll get stuck in my head. I’d have guessed this was newer than 1993 as well. Maybe I’ll revisit it with time, but that just means I’ll have less time to revisit others like Getz / Gilberto.
Has always seemed to me like a really solid 90s indie album than a great one, though definitely one with an original, distinct voice. I like it. 3.7*
love her. it’s fun to go back and listen to this earlier work and hear how different it sounds from the more polished, produced albums that came later
Way better than I thought this would be. I got PJ Harvey and Courtney Barnett vibes.
Cool album, it has some grunge in it. Anyway it seems from the first 2000, not an album from 1993.
Can't believe haven't heard this before, so so good. Ignore the morons saying Phair can't sing "you're probably shy and introspective/that's not part of my objective"
New artist for me. I suppose it's ok but I'm not a fan of her singing. It didn't really vibe with me.
Pretty boring, probably because the "low fi" production makes all the notes barely audible.
3/5 when the whole band plays w her they’re good songs
Didn’t ring with me
Kind of fine. Love that it was grunge before grunge
Singer-songwriter, 83 eme album =>2/5 Une seule écoute suffira pour cet album beaucoup trop long, pas vraiment original et plutôt ennuyeux. Enfin, c'est ce que je pensais après les premiers morceaux. En fait je n'ai pas réussi à aller au bout tellement je me suis ennuyé (arrêt au 12eme morceau), d'où la note finale de 1/5.
best thing about this Liz Phair album is you can see her nipple on the cover
it's like an old-school less-interesting version of Courtney Barnett.
Like an Angry Tori Amos. Decent record. I get why people like her.
Hot trash
Mmmm no conecté. Sin embargo, la historia es buena. Es un álbum indie que sale en un contexto donde el género es dominado por hombres. Da muchas vibes a la peli confesiones de una típica adolescente.
That was really bad. I did not like this, but I feel like a few songs could have been okay if the vocals were muted, so 2 stars.
Starts strong and then just meanders off and honestly I couldn't wait for it to end. No doubt hugely influential, you could draw a line from songs like Fuck and Run to lo-fi emo/punk bands like mom jeans or the front bottoms and alt female bands like best coast, but there are just way too many songs and not many of them are that good
7/10 I had never been exposed to Liz Phair before and, on first listen, this just came across as fairly well executed but ultimately fairly bland 90s indie alt-rock. But this is one of those occasions where my obsession with giving every album I review 2-3 full listens really paid dividends. The opener of the album does fall more or less in line with those initial assessments. It's pretty well executed and reasonably decent stuff, but nothing particularly standout or special. But when reaching Canary, things start to change. I don't know how much was me getting into the feel of the album, but at that point a sort of simmering, unsettling edge started to percolate below the surface, sometimes pushing further forward and sometimes settling further back. But all of a sudden, the album had a bit of life and uniqueness to it that really grabbed hold of me. There's sparseness in places, haunting repetition and sound design in others, but it rarely returns to the more standard alt-rock playbook for the rest of the record. It was still a touch uneven, and there were bits that I really liked and others that were just a bit bland and forgettable, but there was also some really cool vibey stuff in here that only a closer listen really exposed. It's a bit of a shame that this album is nearly an hour long, because with a touch more work on evening out the production slightly and trimming more of the blander fat from the record, I think there's an excellent 35-40 minute album in here. It's just a slight shame that there's an hour of it to wade through to pick out the gems. 6'1"- Quite a pleasant jangle-pop indie starter. She's not the best singer, but has a bit of charm about her delivery and a nice bit of attitude. It all feels a touch sloppy and rough around the edges, but there are some nice chord progressions and some decent melodies, with the subtle vocal harmonies in places working pretty well. Help Me Mary - This has a very 90s indie sound to it, not just production wise, but melodically too. The rhythmic thrust is pretty good and there are some more decent enough melodies in here. Again, it feels a touch rough and ready, but it's not bad. Glory - I think the melody here is good and then it just starts to drift a bit, particularly when she kind of bumps up against the bottom of her vocal register. Again, not bad, but feels almost more of a sketch than a finalised song. Dance Of The Seven Veils - I feel like the melody is going somewhere here but then drags on a bit too long and then tails off. It's a bit meandering and unfocused, like she's got a starting point and something she wants to say, but she's hasn't completely worked out the journey she needs to take to say it. Never Said - We're on to something a bit more single-y now. It's a solid chorus hook, particularly with the lead and backing vocals working so well together. It's got good drive and a really full sound. Super 90s, but that's par for the course. She does repeat the chorus too many times though. It feels like two verses surrounded by over-long choruses does this song a bit of a disservice, which is a shame, because at its core, it's pretty good. Soap Star Joe - Now we get a bit of a weird, slightly disorganised collection of sound choices. It sounds like a demo, rather than a finished idea and is also a tad rambling and repetitive. Not quite sure what to make of this one, but it doesn't feel overly coherent. Explain It To Me - This is quite rhythmically muddled. It's also not very interesting. There's not a great deal to it, really, but it feels very musically confusing, but not in an exciting way, while at the same time feeling quite bland. Canary - And this is much better. It's got a creepy and slightly confusing vibe, but it feels purposeful in comparison to the last track. It's stark, has a bit of attitude and venom to the delivery and the sparsity of the arrangement, alongside the reverberant piano is excellent. Mesmerizing - We're back to something a bit more straight alt-rock now, with a slightly grungy edge. It feels like it's building to something where her fury will boil over and things will get intense, but it kind of mellows into the chorus/solo section instead. And I'm not as disappointed in that as I was expecting to be. I quite like this actually. The rhythms are subtle and it's fairly sparsely arranged, but everything feels like it pulls together into something really good. Fuck And Run - Again, this has a bit of a soft-grunge edge to it. It reminds me a little of the Meat Puppets, actually. There's anger and sadness in the vocal which is backed up by the insistence of the instrumentation. It's got good hooks and attitude, alongside a decent groove. Another solid effort. Girls! Girls! Girls! - There's something slightly unhinged bubbling under the surface here which I really like. I think the execution isn't completely to my taste, but the slightly unsettling and relentless vibe to it is quite cool. Divorce Song - Back towards single town now. Musically and thematically. The groove is pretty engaging and the pulling in and out of the bass works well. The increasing intensity of the vocal is cool. I kind of wish it went somewhere heavier, rather than somewhere oddly country at the end, but again, a decent track. Shatter - A slow, vibey burn now. The droning underneath gives it more of that slightly shifty, unsettling vibe that some of my favourite tracks here have had. It feels almost hopeless in it's starkness, but there are little moments in the vocal that lift it out of the murk really nicely. It's the longest track on the record, but vibe-wise, it definitely earns its place and justifies its length. Flower - The sound design here is pretty cool and there's more of that unsettling, creepy relentlessness to it. It's intense and softly aggressive in a really unique way. Excellent. Johnny Sunshine - The layered vocals here are good. It does become a bit disorganised in places though and doesn't feel completely structurally coherent, unfortunately, despite the individual sections each being quite good. Not a bad vibe though. Gunshy - The shimmering, watery chorus on the guitar here is really nice. The vocal gets a touch lost in the mix, but it's another with a slightly creepy edge to it and a drifting yet oppressive feel. Not so keen on the double-timed chorus, but I think the rsmeat is really good and super vibey. Stratford-On-Guy - This has some slightly extreme chord progressions, but it gives things a purposefully weird, off-kilter sound. And then things focus in during the chorus, throw in a bit of fire, centre us and then spit us back out again. It's a great chorus actually, and I think it works all the better for the slight weirdness of the verses. Strange Loop - This drifts back a bit to the less inspiring stuff from the early album. There's still some decent bits and pieces in here, but it feels a bit more generic 90s alt-rock and less special than the more dark and unsettling part of the record. There's still a touch of that in there, but not quite enough. As with those early tracks, it's still not bad, just a touch too bland. The complete collapse at the end is quite cool though.
Good 90s vibes
Really liked this. Sounds like a precursor to Courtney Barnett etc.
It was ok, not bad but not great.
just background grunge-lite music. I bet this would've been a soundtrack to a mid-90's indie movie and would've fit pretty well. Never Said Nothing actually caught me and snapped me out of the grey noise of an album, so it wasn't an awful listen. Thats the issue I have with it though, I forgot several times I was even listening to an album until I paid close attention.
Borrrrring! Finished the album (which was Waaaaaaay too long) and couldn’t remember a single moment from it. Feel free to drop this one from future revisions
Very smart album commented back to Stines’ Exile in Mainstreet album…
3.5
2.0
outrageously Lauren-coded. pretty good tho, actually interesting alternative tho some very questionable lyrics
Sounded influential but wasn't that memorable for me
I was looking forward to this one but nothing really grabbed me. It feels awfully personal and exposes feelings that maybe I'm just too uptight to deal with.
odeio homens
01) 6'1" - 6,0 02) Help Me, Mary - 5,5 03) Glory - 5,5 04) Dance of the Seven Veils - 5,5 05) Never Said - 6,5 06) Soap Star Joe - 6,0 07) Explain It to Me - 5,5 08) Canary - 5,5 09) Mesmerizing - 5,5 10) Fuck and Run - 6,0 11) Girls! Girls! Girls! - 5,5 12) Divorce Song - 6,0 13) Shatter - 5,5 14) Flower - 5,0 15) Johnny Sunshine - 5,5 16) Gunshy - 5,5 17) Stratford-on-Guy - / 18) Strange Loop? - 6,0 TOTAL: 5,68 (57/100)
Lowkey astringent.
I really enjoyed Soap Star Joe. The rest of the album was fine, I like what she's trying to do here.
While listening to Flower, I turned it up because I was rocking out to it - but couldn't really hear the lyrics. Then I realized that the song is the epitome of my "horny (corny)" theory to making songs about sex, and fell in love with the song - and the entire album. 4.5 stars rounding up.
So so
3.5
Visit "Exile In Bookville", quite amazing.
Fucks pretty hard
485/1089 - Classic indie combo of cool and unique instrumentals with poor vocals. The flat, matter-of-fact vocal delivery works for some of the more extreme subject matter songs as a form of contrast. Not a style that I like listening to though unless the voice is also timbrally interesting.
어우 듣기좋아
Three stars, pretty laid back and enjoyable.
Voice is a little too monotone but that’s part of the appeal. Love the lyrics.
1 - this sucks
6’1” - I don’t like her voice I think? It’s flat and gravelly? Help Me Mary - voice suits this range better. So melancholic. Never Said - I normally hate repetitive lyrics but this felt appropriate, asserting innocence in the face of pressure to admit wrongdoing. Canary - listening to her talk about a number 2 pencil made me wonder how old she is when recorded this song. Believe she was 17 so it fits the oeuvre of the rest of those songs. Mesmerizing - really captures the teenage need to more than
Weird as fuck but not bad
This grew on me as it went on. I liked the simplistic nature of it, and I can see where it had influence on the 90’s. Worth a round up and a revisit. 3.5/5
I bought this when it came out and wasn’t too impressed. Most likely due to the imperfect guitar playing, the far from perfect lower range vocal delivery, and the lo-fi production. Revisiting this 30+ years later I’m realizing I missed the point. Those are the very things that make this a good record, and honor the 4-track/cassette-driven aspects of its derivation. It’s not a great record, but it stands as a pretty strong influential foundation for so many future indie female artists that no doubt would not have gained as much were it not for Liz being somewhat of a trailblazer.
Man, there were times I absolutely hated her voice. Right out the gate I felt like 6’1” is almost unlistenable. Then there were times I loved it, like dance of the seven veils and canary. 21 is also a lot of songs. 2.75
Thought this was fine. That Flower song sure was something. 2.75/5
Great album. This is a best-in-class type album, like this is as good as it gets for this niche of 90s singer/songwriter category. Particularly enjoy the more atmospheric moments. Lyrics are fantastic, gritty with a biting sense of humor. Whole thing is good, second half is really good. I used to loooove this album when I was an adolescent. Would get stoned and listen to it a lot. Doesn't quite do the same for me now, but that's a ME thing 'cause I'm not as cool now. Need more Liz Phairs in this world.
Yeah bro 3/5
KANYE IS A MAGA PIECE OF VILE UNMEDICATED TRASH
Really unique voice, I like the vocals particularly in Glory. It's very reminiscent of the era it was made in, the guitar is bolder, but nothing particularly stands out to me, except for the lyricism. Further I listen into the album, the more monotonous it sounds. The lyrics of course are quite poetic but nothing else really invokes any interest in me. It's a lot of the same stuff, with not technicality or expertise. Politically, very active and that I think makes this album significant, but it doesn't make it necessarily good. It's listenable and it's enjoyable but it's nothing more than that.
I enjoyed the clever lyricism. Liz can write a song.
nice enough
like the Aimee Mann record, pleasant enought but dead me would not regret not listening to this
Some good stuff, some undercooked stuff. It's got spirit though. Spirit goes a long way.
I was kinda boring but I kinda liked it too?
It was okay-ish.
Bit boring, mostly sounded the same.
Pretty nice.
Liz Phair was hot. Had an edge to her. And rocked hard. Everyone fell in love with her. Once you listen to this album you will too.
I was looking forward to this as I think there have been songs I’ve enjoyed by Liz Phair in the past but this was underwhelming. The last 1/3 of the album improved and I can ofc see where she’s influenced other artists but if you’re going to have an album of hers on this list I’m not sure it should be this one.
Excellent. Maybe not a ton of range, but so good as what it's trying to do.
jako dobro! malo mi je vrludalo, nekako sve skupa između trojke i četvorke, ali zbog nekih snažnijih stvari (fuck and run; flower) dat ću četvorku
A really fun time. To me, it felt like a more-direct, woman-centric counterpoint to Jeff Buckley's Grace (which I also enjoy), though she beat him to it by more than a year. Phair's vocal performance is at times aggressive and at times very delicate. Her guitar playing is interesting without being ostentatious. Her lyrics are introspective, incisive and poetic. In all, it's a real masterclass in what the 90's alt scene was doing. It sounds of its time without sounding hokey, even from 33 years in the future. You'll read all about how the album is a feminist landmark and, while that's true, it's actually a very subtle and subversive work of the cause. By writing these songs with her genuine perspective as a young woman, asking questions of her experience and just *doing* the thing that seemed a still-too-male domain at the time (rock music), the album is more of an implicitly political act. It isn't an essay that tells you what you ought to think, it's a profoundly emotional work that -- in telling you what she feels and what she's experienced -- could lead the listener to think critically about how being a woman could influence those feelings and experiences. It's brilliant. Once again, though: the music is great. This isn't a political manifesto with a soundtrack grafted atop. It's a lovely and fun album that happens to also have something to say. The craft of the thing hasn't taken a backseat to its spirit, nor has its heart been watered down to suit the tune or, worse, the marketing department. Excellent. 5/5
I recognize the album cover, but don't know if I've heard anything from Liz. Let's see; I'm usually skeptical about albums I'm unaware of. They never live up to the hype... maybe it's me. First song, it's very much on par with that grunge/hippy fusion of the 90s. I'm not enjoying this album.
So utterly forgettable I couldn't remember much about the songs only a few hours after I'd listened to it.
унылые завывания, местами похоже на дешевую пародию на Hole. слушать это скучно, тягомотно. все треки звучат одинаково, сведено очень плохо. западло распинаться про такое унылое дерьмо оценка: 1/5
voimaantunut naislaulaja, ei tämä hassumpaa ole
What the hell? This might be one of the best albums that I haven't heard anything about beforehand from this list. I was really expecting this to be some 90s pop-y over-produced bullshit, but it's really clean alt rock. I'm honestly floored by not just the guitar playing, but also how excellent all the effects are used in each song. Roughly halfway through, I don't think they've reused a single effect. At least, not an exact copy as far as I can tell. It really is just a very great, clean (musically not lyrically) album, that's a response to another really great album. It almost sounds like something out of the 70s, but with more modern production. Favorite song(s): Help Me Mary, Dance of the Seven Veils, Shatter
Fearless and raw. Outstanding debut.
A seminal album of 90s rock and a breakthrough for female rockers.
Muy buen disco, no lo conocia, ni tampoco a ella. Una grata sorpresa.
Good.
played this at work in a shared office and walked away. Came back to Liz singing about wanting to be someone's blowjob queen and fucking him until his dick turned blue. Same here, girl
Not great vocals but the vibe was so 90s (affectionate). I am probably swayed by the cover art.
Authenticity is a funny idea when it comes to art. We like to say that we like things to be authentic, unvarnished, real. We often use all those words interchangeably and treat them as goals that good art should aspire to. This is, of course, the sort of idea that goes in and out of fashion. The 80's were profoundly and perhaps proudly artificial time. Rock bands of the day made it a point cultivate the image of themselves as successors to their heroes of the 70's. They pushed the explicit idea that they were too fast, too loose, too good looking. They were "dangerous" in a very pleasantly marketable way. The 90's was full of attempts to move away from that sort of myth making. Grunge was united far more by being a local scene full of people trying to do away with edifice and artifice of the 80's than by the actual music they played to do that. Seattle was perhaps biggest, but it wasn't necessarily special. Chicago had its own bustling indie scene and out of that scene came Liz Phair. Other people have spun yarns about the history of this album, it's process, Phairs career, it's impact. I wasn't there, so I'll let them tell that story. It's a good one. One that establishes exactly why you should listen to this album. 30 Something years on from it's release, removed from a lot of it's context, certain aspects still shine. Phair's voice isn't exactly beautiful and the instrumentation and songwriting here bend towards the minimal to often for my liking. But when the arrangements are filled out like in "never said" then it still holds up without question. But better than half of this album is Phair's voice and an electric guitar flying solo. I find these track uncompelling on a musical level, which makes it difficult to sit through them for lyrical content, though that is certainly a personal thing for me. The lyrics are often the main subject that comes up about this album and it's easy to imagine how mind blowing this would have been in the early 90's to have some woman singing out about fucking guys till their dick turned blue. The value is a little diminished in a world where Taylor Swift says that Charli XCX talking shit about her makes her wet. The value in this album to someone who wasn't there in the early 90's, someone hearing it for the first time, relies understanding a bit of that contrast. Phair was the first to push a lot of boundaries that have been broken through by now. Whether they know or it or not, Swift, Charli, and countless other women at least little bit of credit to Phair for being one of the first to kick in a door they would later waltz through. After a decade of manufactured rock, Phair gave people something unpolished and unvarnished for them to enjoy. But that bring us back to authenticity thing. You see, as as we crave authenticity and openess, we don't really want them. Everyone approaches the world with an image they want to project. To not do so is something we generally regard as unhinged. Phair cultivates an image here just the same as any hair band from the 80's. But in 93 she was unique and today she's influential. Not too bad for a girl and her guitar. Definitely an essential listen, perhaps even becuase it shows just how far we've come since then.
The world is so full of wonderful things, not least of which are people so different from me that they listened to this album and gave it five stars. Their reality is so different than mine that I can't really imagine it. That said, this fucking sucked.
Ok
Oh my, what a disappointment! I was a little excited to see this come up for the weekend but felt it was all a little mediocre, bland and not that tuneful. Such a shame as I had heard good things about the album.
1. "Never Said" 2. "Fuck and Run" 3. "Stratford-on-Guy"
Ich nehme dann doch lieber Sheryl Crow.
c'est ok
ok
La cover est crazy, l'album est mid
2.7 1x driving CLT to Cumming
I quite enjoyed this, but I didn't love it. The lyrics take centre stage, with the vocals a bit of an acquired taste and the music a bit generic alt-rock. It was pleasant enough for one spin, but I wouldn't listen to it again. Three stars.
Me ha costado escuharlo porque se siente depresivo y no ando en esa pero la voz de Liz phair es genial
Another perfect album!
One of the best rock albums of all time. So earnest and so all encompassing of one woman's full breadth of experience. We all contain multitudes.
Great concept album. It really made me hate men, even though I am one as well. But this is no criticism of the album, it just proves that this album is very good at driving a point across. 3/5
When the first song started playing; 6'1", I thought I was in for a great album that I'd really love. I really liked the style, and the sound of it. But unfortunately of the 18 tracks, only about a quarter of them I really enjoyed. So many tracks feel like they're on the cusp of getting somewhere only to slump back into a slower pace which left me wanting more. Still, a worthwhile listen. Favourites: 6'1" Help Me Mary Never Said Canary
вроде норм, ток скучновато
There was a year there when this record was permanently in my CD changer. It was probably this, Tori, Bjork, PJ Harvey and the Pulp Fiction Soundtrack. Makes me want to dig out the box of zines. It’s been 30 years and this still fucking rocks. 5/5
Not as bad as I thought it would be.
perfect
This might be one of the most overrated records I’ve ever heard in my life. I genuinely don’t understand how this album gets praised so highly. While listening I felt bored and increasingly annoyed. The songs are dull, the production is flat, and nothing really grabs you. But what killed it for me were the lyrics — they’re just bad. Not even in an “honest and raw” way… they’re crude, awkward, and often just plain not polite for no real reason. It feels like she was trying way too hard to be shocking and edgy, but it comes off childish and try-hard instead. There’s almost no melody, no interesting riffs, and zero replay value. I kept waiting for that legendary moment everyone talks about, but it never showed up. The whole album just drags and feels amateurish. I respect that it was influential for some people at the time, but to me it’s massively overrated. I have no idea why this is considered a classic or a masterpiece. One of the biggest “what were people thinking?” albums I’ve sat through in a long time.
Was adequate. Far too long for what it was.
I both found this shite and weirdly alright at the same time
Really good album! Definitely an album that needs to be played more then once.
Pretty good. Good voice, cool attitude. Decent lyrics. A few stand-out tunes. Quite Courtney Barnett vibey, who I think does it better. But i suppose she'd have inspired a lot of those contemporary female acts. So fair play.
Meh
I like her voice but not really anything to come back to. Far too long also
I don't know. It's kind of blah alt rock. Liz has a pretty low alto voice, but not as interesting as other vocalists. Reminds me a little of Sheryl Crow but not as good.
I didn't really discover Phair until later, so I don't have the same sort of history with it that others do. But this is her best album, so even though it is maybe just a strong 4, I'm bumping it up to 5.
Ani DiFranco's 'Not a Pretty Girl' might have been more blunt in it's messaging, but there was something equally powerful in Phair's sidelong take down of toxic dudes, which somehow also often managed to skewer herself, too. Anthems for insecure lapsed Catholic girls who know first wave feminism failed us.
I already know that this is a 5 star album for me. I've loved this one for decades.
Hehehehe... boob
fun listen! awesome vibes and i love the lyrics as well #awesome #forthegirls Fuck and Run song of the year 2026 i <3 it and the whole album
Quite excellent!
Was familiar with album cover, never listened to music prior. A lot softer than I was expecting. Both vocal delivery and music in general. Surprising and it wasn't a bad surprise, but was easily distracted
wasn’t my style
#imsorrywomen but i did NOT like this one. One of my core feminist beliefs is that women should make more mediocre, badly executed yet true art (like many. MANY men do all the time) and this record is a perfect example of that. Even if i cannot personally enjoy it on a musical level, i recognize that its a revolutionary piece given the lyrics and the moment it was released.
Decent listen. Kind of a blend of singer song writer with a punk edge. Interesting combination. Comes off pretty Poppy. Album cover reminded me of Lingua Ignota but the music was nowhere near as dark or as interesting.
Every hot girl you knew in high school was in to this album, and I get it. It’s a very feminist take on sexual politics and female empowerment. She doesn’t mince words. Musically I think it’s very 90s; it’s not something that would stand out today for the sound but it did then. She laid the groundwork for the less aggressive wave of women doing singer/songwriter alt rock in the years to come I think. When you think of an independent badass 90s woman you think of Liz Phair. Anyway I liked it.
# Album Name: Exile In Guyville # Artist: Liz Phair # Rating: 2/5 # Comments: Thats a big no from me. # Top Tunes: # Would I listen to it again? No
There’s some famous quote about everybody that purchased the Velvet Underground album started a band. Something like that. Not sure about Liz Phair - but everybody who bought this loved loved fucking music. Not sure how many started bands. I didn’t.
A good listen for sure - most of this still holds up. Fuck and Run esp is still really hard-hitting and still a great vibe.
Interesante, le dará más oportunidad
I'd heard the stratford one back when I did limewire explorations, and heard a lot of good things about homegirl. It's all fine appreciate the ambition. It is no exile on main street though. And it's hard to take a white girl talking using the dick word "Jimmy" very seriously.
debut work answering to the stones? hell yes, raw & feminine? even better!
Reminds me of a grown up Alanís Morisette
Perfect rock record
Good honest music
Someone said bland and great at the same time and I agree. The blandness is more the moody, tense, demeanor that comes through but overall it’s kinda interesting kinda not? I’m a bit confused on this one.
There is a lot of songs but it didn’t feel like it was too long. Not a bad album.
pop rock from the nineties, good singer Favorite track: never said other picks: explain it to me, ,mesmerizing
Decent
No thanks
Highlights: 6’1, Help Me Mary, Dance of Seven Veils, Fuck and Run, Divorce Song, Stratford-On-Guy. In a nutshell: "temper my hatred with peace" Previous reviews have said it better than me, so I'll say this instead: One has to learn the word cunt from somewhere, why not from a song by a woman who takes ownership of it? Give this album to a dejected or pissed off older teen (female or non-binary). Or a music-loving friend downtrodden by life. Let them listen, alone. It might give them something to reflect on and perhaps after they will brave the world again. Hopefully feeling empowered. Overall: 7/10
I wasn’t very keen on this
Quintessential female indie rock that started a movement.
Helt okej, men inget som stod ut för mig
El sonido que distingue el rock alternativo de los 90s que no era grunge sobre todo los artistas firmados por matador no es un mal disco pero siento que lo e escuchado otras 3 veces por otros artistas
Feels like the American pop version of PJ harvey as a compliment.
This was my first experience with this album, and likely my last. Jagged Little Pill-esque with boring musicianship and a MUCH less talented singer.
Too much sk8trboi for me ..good voice, great sound but loses me
“Mom can we listen to hole?” “No, we have hole at home” The hole at home:
Her var det mye jeg likte veldig godt! Men så var det også en god tredjedel (om ikke mer) som er uinspirert 90s musikk. Som forøvrig er helt greit at går i bakgrunnen, men ikke så mye mer enn det. En trestjernes CD som lett kunne vært en firestjerners LP.
Høres ut som proto-Courtney Barnett og det er jo kult. Til tider høres det også ut som indieversjonen av college rock og andre ganger litt grungete. Hiten "Fuck And Run" får meg til å tenke på The Only Ones og er en av låtene jeg liker best sammen med åpningssporet og "Divorce Song". Det som drar plata ned er at den kunne vært strammet opp. Flere låter virker som bare er med for å fylle opp CD-en. Kanskje særlig "Flower" føles malplassert.
Got through it but it was a struggle. Just not my type of music I guess.
Really enjoying listening to this. Never came across Liz before but really liking the homespun feel. Sounds like it was recorded on a 4 track in someone’s kitchen, but the sparse production puts the interesting vocals to the fore. Comes across as being lyrically honest and the non/half rhyming adds charm. 4