RSSIn 1994, no up-and-coming artist has gotten more ink, andWhip-Smart (Matador) will certainly outsell her debut.Since Phairis smart, honest, gifted, and a welcome relief in the gender-roledepartment, let's hope she survives this success.Whip-Smart is apretty good record that serves up enoughfucks to keep aspiring boytoys happy, but yokels who don't know fromGuyville are sure towonder how many editors she's been sleeping with. Where thequietest entries on the first album got under your skin eventually,here songs you want to fall for end up misfiring slightly. Thedifference is so subtle that hype-primed consumers may not notice.But it's enough to keep her off the cover ofRolling Stone untilshe takes her music up a notch again.
Fast Cuts: OnLoose (Mammoth/Atlantic),Victoria Williams, thequirky singer-songwriter whose battle with multiple sclerosisinspired last year'sSweet Relief tribute, makes clear why so manygood musicians want her to keep working. OnNo Need To Argue(Island), the Cranberries' Dolores O'Riordan makes clear that herdream-pop has substance.
Playboy, Oct. 1994
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