Artist bio

Liz Phair, though she has continued to grow as a writer and a musician over the past decade, would still have a place in rock history were she to have quit the biz after the release of her bombshell first album, Exile In Guyville. Exile was a revelation, a 18-track opus that sounds like it was recorded where it was largely written, in the upstairs bedroom of a teenage girl in suburban Chicago.

Listeners and writers picked up most strongly on the brazen sexuality of tracks like "Fuck And Run" and "Flower," but equally striking was the unabashed pop of "Never Said" and "6'1''," the seductive riffing on "Mezmerizing," the vivid portrait of breakup on "Divorce Song," the elegant atmospheric mood set in "Stratford-On-Guy," etc. It might have announced the birth of a star, but it was her coming-out party and grand achievement at the same time.

Phair would follow up Guyville with the very good albums Whip-Smart and whitechocolatespaceegg, but though neither have embarrassing moments, really, neither comes close to her 1993 debut. That said, Phair was one of the '90s' more intriguing female singer-songwriters, and whether or not her future work ever materializes, she'll be remembered fondly, if only as that frustrated and inspired girl in the attic.

Albums by this artist

Liz Phair (2003)

whitechocolatespaceegg (1998)

Whip-Smart (1994)

Exile In Guyville (Recommended) (1993)

Liz Phair

Whip-Smart

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» TROY CARPENTER | CO-DIRECTOR

Liz Phair Whip-Smart Matador, 1994 RiYL: Aimee Mann, The Jesus And Mary Chain, Pavement's Brighten The Corners

1994's Whip-Smart was the album that allowed Liz Phair to become a full-fledged artist. It followed 1993's astounding debut Exile In Guyville as less of a bold statement but no less a cohesive album, assuring that Phair's success would not be solely based on a snapshot of a girl with a four-track in an attic.

In fairness, Guyville is the kind of record that's really hard to follow up. Whip-Smart, to Phair's credit, is not an attempt to re-create the spontaneity or raw effect of her first record. But it is also not a huge leap forward.

Whip-Smart has a slicker sound, but still reflects Phair's basic instrumental ambitions. With cohorts Brad Wood and Casey Rice, she pounds out insistently melodic and lyrically inventive songs throughout the album.

On rhythmic songs like "X-Ray Man" and "Jealousy," Phair displays a seductive swagger, indulging in some dark, Rolling Stones-meet-Suzanne Vega rock energy. "Shane" and "Nashville" exemplify another end of Phair's spectrum, a detached narrator musing in a tired, husky voice (the last 90 seconds of the former has Phair's repetition of "You gotta have fear in your heart" steadily being replaced by a TV drone).

Phair's lyrics take a broader turn on Whip-Smart, directing specific scenes in "Dogs Of L.A." ("You were beaming as I focused in / and I panned along / and I raced you to the top / kicking snakes up from dusty rocks / young Abe Vigoda plays Frankenstein") and throwing out witty advice in "Whip-Smart" (I'm gonna tell my son to keep his money in his mattress / and his watch on any hand between his thighs").

Sure, Whip-Smart still stands in the shadow of Guyville, but it is definitely worthy of further inspection on its own merits. It proves Liz Phair's consistency and establishes her more firmly within the rock pantheon.

TROY CARPENTER | Troy Carpenter founded NATN from a Chicago apartment during the ambitious winter of 1998 with co-conspirators Ben French and Jonathan Cohen. After a five-year stint in New York, he and wife Lourdes have recently relocated to Indianapolis, where he spends days listening to music and nights in the kitchen at Elements restaurant. Musical heroes: Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, Super Furry Animals. What else makes life worth living: Sushi, Phucty, runs in the park, and the Atlanta Braves.