In trying to create a name for themselves, artists generally try to mix genres to make an entirely new sound. Unfortunately, Liz Phair's new album, Somebody's Miracle, while commendable for the attempt, sounds like many indie/pop albums by other female artists of the day.
Born in 1967 in New Haven, Conn., Phair was raised in Winnetka, a Chicago suburb. Her new, wealthy parents gave her the opportunity to go to high school and later to attend Oberlin College in Ohio. Throughout her college career and years afterward she was extremely interested in the underground indie rock scene. With a growing love of music, she moved to San Francisco with a friend to try jump-starting the singing career she had been dreaming of. When she discovered that the West Coast wasn't working out, she moved back to Chicago and began recording homemade tapes, giving herself the name GirlySound. After many years of home recordings and selling paintings on the streets of Chicago to get by, her first label Matador finally picked her up in the summer of '92.
She worked strenuously to release her first album, Exile in Guyville, which was put on the racks in the summer of '93. Soon, Matador signed a partnership contract with Atlantic Records and Phair's album was one of the first to come out of the new association. Since then she has released three other albums, which has spurned much controversy by critics and fans alike who want her to keep to her indie roots but feel that she had crossed to a more pop sound. The new album, Somebody's Miracle, was released Oct. 4, more than two years after her self-titled previous album.
This new album is working hard — maybe too hard — to create another fresh sound for Phair. It combines the pop-like beats with a country-like guitar sound that doesn't seem to mesh well together. It's hard to determine if she is more pop singer or country singer. Because of this confusion, the sound of her music is more jumbled than fluid.
The title track "Somebody's Miracle" is a slow reverie with a prominent, poppy beat. The electric guitar adds sporadic notes, but the strumming of the acoustic guitar dominates. When the chorus chimes in "There goes somebody's miracle / Walking down the street / There goes some other fairy tale / Wish it had been me" the guitar becomes louder, although no more creative, and the electric guitar becomes a little louder, playing the same notes, over and over again. Phair's voice isn't bad, but there is nothing in this song to make it seem distinct.
The hit single "Everything to Me" begins much like a country song with a serenely plucked banjo complimenting the constant strumming of the acoustic guitar. Phair's voice is deeper and more harmonious on this track until she starts singing the chorus "Are you ever going to be that real to me / Everything to me," when her voice pitches and she sounds like she is 13 instead of 38.
The drums don't kick in until the first chorus, and they don't do much to add to the sound because they are relegated to the background. While in this song she seems to lean more towards the country side, she still seems to want to keep one foot in the pop door which makes the song unconvincing and frustrating to listen to.
Finally, the song "Lost Tonight" is much closer to her pop roots, and the sound is filled with electric guitar, putting the acoustic on the backburner for once. The beat is more powerful and helps add some vibrancy to the constant strumming of the electric guitar, which is quite monotonous. As she belts out "Cause I want to get lost tonight with you / What you got is what I need from you too," it's difficult to continue listening because her voice peaks and almost cracks. There is a little guitar riff in the middle of the song, but that too is quite repetitive, making one wonder where exactly her creativity lies.
The album as a whole could be seen as a change from her old ways but it cannot be praised for being better. The critics and fans were right when they scolded her for not sticking with what she knows.
Grade: C
