VINYL FORMAT. In a gatefold sleeve! "Ani DiFranco's Red Letter Year is, upon first listen, a shock to the ears. It's easily the most lush and elegantly recorded album of the eighteen studio offerings she's created thus far. There are precedents in her catalog for music that resembles this: songs with full arrangements and more complex textures and melodies to be sure, but as an album, Red Letter Year stands out clearly in the same way Dilate and Little Plastic Castles did when th   [ read more ]

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On her relatively spare sixth album (which features only one other musician, percussionist/vocalist Andy Stochansky, and, on one song, singer Kate Fenner), Ani DiFranco takes on a few expected topics, such as abortion ("Tiptoe"), capital punishment ("Crime for Crime"), and why she isn't on a major label ("The Million You Never Made"). But much of the disc is given over to introspective ruminations on personal life and love. As usual, the singer is not shy (despite a song of that title) abo   [ read more ]

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It's clear Ani DiFranco never hesitates to swim in a gulf of her own lyrical prowess. A storyteller herself, she takes pride in her tales of heartbreak, society's woes, and life's journey. Phrases like "but the bacteria are coming to take us down, that's my prediction...it's the answer to this culture of the quick fix prescription" hands you a vision through her periscope of the world. DiFranco's status as a sublime symbol of artistic elegance is well proven through words on this revelling album. ~ Da   [ read more ]

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This EP gathers together various odds and ends: a radio edit of "Swing" from the To the Teeth album, shortened by eliminating Corey Parker's rap but with the funky rhythmic elements pushed up in the mix; a recasting of "To the Teeth" that, unfortunately, de-emphasizes the angry lyrics; and covers of Woody Guthrie, Phil Ochs, and Bob Dylan songs, each recast in characteristic DiFranco style. Of the last three, the one that works best is a version of "Hurricane" recorded for but not   [ read more ]

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Living in Clip is Ani DiFranco's first live album, and she seems to be making up for lost time: She's crammed several years worth of live performances into these two CDs. Most of these songs are performed by only three people: Andy Stochansky on drums, Sara Lee on bass, and DiFranco on acoustic guitar (although her trio is joined a couple of times by Doc Severinsen's Buffalo Philharmonic orchestra). Clearly, she doesn't need a big band to put on an electrifying show; her concert perform   [ read more ]

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Ani DiFranco doesn't really expand her sonic palette on Dilate, but she doesn't need to. DiFranco racked up a dedicated cult audience on the basis of her conviction. There's not much melody on any of her songs, but there are messages and, thankfully, a fair share of humor. Dilate suffers from a bit too much repetition, but when DiFranco lands on a good hook -- such as "Superhero" or "Done Wrong" -- the results suggest that she could reach a wider audience. ~ Thom Owens, All Music Guide

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Little Plastic Castle posed an unusual challenge for Ani DiFranco. She released this record after spending a year promoting her first live CD (Living in Clip) by repeatedly admitting to reporters that her studio albums lack the vitality of her concert performances. Rock critics agreed en masse, and their praise for the live album helped to propel DiFranco to a new level of mainstream stardom -- but it also heightened the scrutiny on her next studio recording. Fortunately, she managed to dodge   [ read more ]

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DiFranco spruces up her sparse folk arrangements with the odd brass band, accordion, and even an electric guitar or two, but the meat of these songs is still her distinctively funky acoustic guitar style (she borrowed her rhythmic plucking technique from R&B, but unplugged, it bears no resemblance to its genre of origin). Meanwhile, DiFranco's spunky activist lyrics are tempered here by a bigger dose of vulnerability than in previous albums, which allows for a unique mix of anger, humor, and poi   [ read more ]

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Singers/songwriters Utah Phillips and Ani DiFranco follow the success of their previous collaboration, The Past Didn't Go Anywhere, with 1999's Fellow Workers. As the title suggests, this album focuses on America's labor movement, telling its triumphs and troubles through stories, songs and poetry. Phillips, DiFranco and her touring band played for 40 guests in the living room of an old New Orleans mansion. This homey, intimate vibe comes across in the recording, adding a freshness to thei   [ read more ]

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Ani DiFranco has earned her rep as the most independent of artists. She records for her own label, and as a result says and does pretty much as she pleases. DiFranco has also shown a willingness to experiment, mixing genres and styles, and Evolve is clearly an important link in her continued evolution. Piano, horns, and guitar mix and merge on "Promised Land," offering a bluesy blend of progressive folk, while a heavy backbeat informs the funky "In My Way." The arrangements are much busier   [ read more ]

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Few indie artists (or "mainstream" artists, for that matter) can rival the body of work of radical folkster Ani DiFranco. Without the backing of a major label (or seeking it), DiFranco has gone her own way at every fork in the road and proven herself to be an inspiring creative force. With her provocative views, sardonic wit, and poetic acumen, she's an anti-establishment jugular biter with a sweet smile. About as solo as an album can be -- DiFranco wrote, played, sang, and produced everything --    [ read more ]

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The self-appointed CEO of intrepid indie grrrl rock sparks one more with Up Up Up Up Up Up, an ebullient addition to an already prolific and deeply admirable career. The playful synthetics and occasional stabs at atypical Ani DiFranco stylings belie the general humorlessness of her lyrics: "'Tis of Thee" is as annoyed with American TV-news culture as one can get (as might be expected of street-cynical Ani). "Come Away" is just plain corny, wistfully scrapbooking a lover away with tinkly pu   [ read more ]

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