Biggest Letdowns of 2010: Pete Yorn and Liz Phair

powerpopaholic WTF

So what good is reviewing all this if I couldn’t rant about the two albums that disappointed me the most:

Pete Yorn “Pete Yorn”
Pete Yorn has been a victim of his own success, never quite reaching the highs of his debut from 2001. Like a lost soul trying to find himself, he’s trying stuff to see what “sticks” I guess. Last year he did a duet with actress Scarlett Johansson titled Break Up and while it had it’s moments (“Relator” is a great tune), it seemed a pale imitation of M.Ward and Zooey Deschanel’s She and Him. His latest self titled album was produced by Pixies frontman Frank Black. The opener “Precious Stone” and “Rock Crowd” are distinct enough, but his persona is swallowed whole by Black’s style. Yorn literally becomes a mini-Pixie most of the album after the first few tracks. After “Badman” you forget who you’re listening to. If you liked Black’s old band, then you’ll like this album, otherwise you’ll ask “Pete who?” I’d rather listen to the weary Back & Fourth instead, but even that lacks the memorable hooks that made Pete such a good songwriter. Right now he’s the musical version of Zelig.

Liz Phair “Funstyle”
Much has been written slamming this album for a variety of reasons. Fans of the Exile in Guyville Liz don’t want to hear the horrid rap “Bollywood” and “Smoke,” a whine about how the mainstream music industry is filled with wannabes and slimy corporate shills. This is like your grandma telling a corny joke and explaining the punch-line – it poisoned many listeners first impression of Funstyle. Truth is, the good songs lie a few tracks deeper, but how much muck are you willing sift through? “Miss September” and “Oh, Bangladesh” prove Liz still knows her stuff. And the Liz I love comes through on “Satisfied,” but too much here is full of cliched crap that I expect from your average Beyonce clone. Liz seems to expect the critical response with the satiric “U Hate It” but it’s about as subtle as neon sign. That’s not so say it’s terrible, and some critics have bent over backwards to praise her light-hearted humor. True, this album is more honest and confessional than her last one, but that doesn’t mean it’s that good either.

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