Liz Phair

Exile In Guyville Re-Issue (ATO)

By Catherine Cole
Published: June 25th, 2008 | 12:00am

When your indie-rock career started with one of the most critically acclaimed records of the ‘90s, only to be followed by a decade of disappointing studio albums, where do you go next? If your name’s Liz Phair, you come around full circle and take a hard look at where you came from.

It’s not exactly news: when Liz Phair released Exile In Guyville 15 years ago, it filled holes in the souls of young, independent women everywhere (gaps that some didn’t even know they had). Her riveting, honest lyrics were unapologetic — they gave voice to the complexities of being sexually empowered while remaining humbly romantic — i.e. “What ever happened to a boyfriend / The kind of guy who makes love ‘cause he’s in it / I want a boyfriend," on "Fuck and Run." Hearing “Flower” can still send giggly chills down the backs of listeners when Phair croons, “I want to fuck you like a dog / I’ll take you home and make you like it."

So what does the re-issue have that you don’t already? Four previously unreleased B-sides and a DVD documentary about the making of the album. The first B-side, “Ant In Alaska,” is reason enough to get Guyville again (available on vinyl, CD, or in digital format this time around). It’s quintessential Phair with her simple guitar, raspy voice, and melancholy lyrics (“I’m just an ant in Alaska to you”).

The 60-minute DVD, Guyville Redux, features an introduction by ATO Records co-owner and founder Dave Matthews, plus interviews with This American Life’s Ira Glass, and Gerard Cosloy and Chris Lombardi of Matador Records, along with a few of the other key “guys” of Guyville. It’s pretty hilarious to see Phair on the same couch with them.

Phair is also working on another studio album due out this fall on ATO. And after revisiting her past, it’s invigorating to hear she’s now turned towards the future.

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