Corporate Line: Ani DiFranco has been “on her own” -to quote her company’s phone number-for a long time. But not since the release of her second album back in 1991 has she been quite as much a solo act as she is on her latest CD, Educated Guess . On it, Ani not only plays all the instruments and provides the lead and backing vocals, but for the first time in her career she singlehandedly did all the recording and mixing, and stuffed the discs into the jewel cases as well.
We’re joking about that last part, but the rest is no exaggeration. If it weren’t for Greg Calbi (who mastered the album, as he has done with almost all of Ani’s recordings for the last decade), the folks who usually proofread liner notes at Righteous Babe would have to take the month off. Educated Guess is truly a singular sensation.
The Good:
Origami The unfolding of men has come to torture the male listeners yet Ani still finds a way to unravel the Y chromosome in a new way.
Animal Although the song is extremely slow it is also poignant and hits the nail dead on the head.
The Average:
Swim Raw however a little slow.
Clip Clop Clap The lyrics seem to be less inspired.
The Ugly:
Bliss Like This I wouldn’t buy an Ani cd to hear her recite poetry so this is seems like an awful waste of time. Same goes for Grand Canyon .
Frankly: Ani gets back to the gritty root of things; gritty and sluggish. Educated Guess rolls along at a snails pace and the fervor of Ani of old. Ani seems to have settled into a rocking chair snuggled up with her guitar singing to grandkids. This is one of the rare Ani albums that I haven’t loved.
+ Rae Gun
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