Ani DiFranco - Up Up Up Up Up Up Up - 1999 (iTunes - Amazon)
I suppose it was bound to happen, right? After four straight brilliant albums in a row Ani was bound to have become stale, bored, self-conscious, a little pretentious. (A Little??)
So, let's live blog it and see what's really going on:
1. Tis of Thee. Oh, you are really going to take the country to task, eh? What's strange to me here is that this is a full year before the Bush administration. I really don't recall it all being so bad. Yeah, there were talk shows, which seem to really piss her off but, sweetie, that's nothing compared to the ass-pit of reality shows that's coming.
2. Virtue. This song is almost daring me to fast forward. It's dour, meandering, processed and annoying.
3. Come Away From It. Remember that playful, fun Ani DiFranco + band from the last album? Apparently, she's been tied up and stored in a closet. And the new Ani writes crap like this. 8 Minutes....but, it's kind of growing on me. Hmm....
4. Jukebox. The Grammy nom track. Within the first 30 seconds it's as though Ani has wiped away the first 18 dour minutes of this record. But, Female Rock Vocalist? But her voice is so...so...processed. It's being wrung through some filters and tweaked and massaged. Hmm. The song? Forgettable.
5. Angel Food. rename this album, Zz Zz Zz Zz Zz Zz. Oh, wait, there's someone making some noise and Ani and Julie the keyboard player don't know who it is. Ani, are you just recording and releasing jam sessions now?
6. Angry Any More. The angry young grrl is finally coming to terms with growing up. This song is one of the most honest and beautiful in her catalog. It's not that great. It's that, if you listen to Ani from the start like I am you get the second best way of discovering the artists. The first way would be to buy each album starting with the first as a 19 year old girl and grow up with her. Since so much of her work is confessional, these records are almost Portrait of an Artist as a teen, young girl, woman, etc. And this short piece sort of sets us up for the rest of the DiFranco catalog. (I am assuming this. All I know is that she got married recently, is no longer gay or bisexual and has a kid). Good tune.
7. Everest. Man this album is slow and in love with the bass. It's pretty. I'm not sure why i should care. I'm not sure she does, either.
8. Up Up Up Up Up Up. Minimalism that would make David Lynch worry that he's too cacophonous. Until it opens up and explodes with...a gigantic minimalism. Does that make sense? No? Hmm...Maybe you should hear it.
9. Know Now Then. What might be considered as this albums spoken word offering, with backing vocals and jazzy backing music. This is futurist, space age, beat poetry.
10. Trickle Down. The "make it stop" song. Ambient guitar noodling. Electro OK Computer gleeps and clicks. And annoying processed vocals. Blech. Is she still angry about Reaganomics? In 99?
11. Hat Shaped Hat. "I will not be afraid to let my talents shine!" Oh, Ani. Where is that lyricist that could destroy and uplift at the same time? Has she really traded her strengths and fortes for hippy dippy jams? And 12 minute ones at that?
I can't chastise an artist for doing what she wants to do. It's her art. her discovery. But I don't have to listen to it again. Let's hope this is just a momentary blip. Like Puddle Dive.
Grade: D
A Side: Angry Any More
BlindSide: Come Away From It, Up Up Up Up Up Up
Downside: Virtue, Angel Food, Trickle Down
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