Oops!, I meant to say Banana Republic, my bad. Looks like Liz is re-emerging with an ad campaign for Banana Republic, similar to her ad stint with The Gap a few years ago. Sounds like she is actually going to compose and sing an original song for a compilation cd being assembled by her and other artists being featured in the ads. Hopefully the new album isn't far behind now. SM came out a short time after her Gap ads campaign begin back in '05. Here's the link: http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_dis...db460b9fd283859

not a very indie spirited return, but at least she's working. and it will be new music... hopefully. i remember that they left her out of that Gap cd compilation thing back in '05.

Sounds cool to me

It doesn't exactly bode well for all those statements she's made about going back to her "roots" but, at least it's something. And it could turn out to be okay. I hope it does.

Shoot! I don't even know why we're having this discussion! You guys watched that video she did with the Matrix spoof. She's totally back!

That's cool for Liz & hope it works, but I'm a little surprised-I heard Gap was close to bankruptcy and isn't Banana Republic part of the same corporation? It's just a shitty time for retail period.

Yeah, Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy--they're all part of the same corporation

Liz's ad for Banana Republic is in the front couple of pages of the current issue of New York magazine (Kate Moss cover). It's a big photo of her (covering 2 whole pages) lounging with an acoustic guitar. On the bottom left there's a paragraph about how cities inspire her, and she says she has English heritage so London is particularly inspiring. I wonder how she knows that, or if she was ever able to track down her biological parents.

Anyway, I almost didn't catch the ad because I stopped reading the always-sophomoric and increasingly 'bloggy' New York months ago when I realized how angry it made me every time I flipped through it. My roommates have a subscription. Wasn't it someone from this magazine who wrote that Somebody's Miracle was Liz's best album to date?

i found this on some blog:
"9 Free music downloads from never-before heard tracks from Sarah Bareilles, Dashboard Confessional, Liz Phair, Ok Go, David Sanchez, AYO, Tommy Torres Esperanza Spalding and David Garret with any purchase, now through 5/31"
the city stories website says something like "coming soon" about the compilation. will someone buy something at BR?

The new song from BR is called "Faith & Tenderness" and isn't the same as the one played on "90210" the other night.

Here's more info:
http://stereogum.com/archives/video/liz-ph...xcl_069352.html

Any info when the song will be up? Anyone shop or work at Banana Republic?

Oh wait, it's up! Who wants to volunteer to buy something cheap and get the code?

I bought something cheap and am I about to redeem my code. Hopefully it will work.

I don't think we are allowed to upload stuff so I don't know how to let people hear it.
The song was disappointing. I'm not going to lie.

On this website?? We upload stuff ALL the time. So, you don't have to worry about uploading here.
Even if it does suck (which it probably does), I would like to hear it anyway. Please upload??

Okay than:

http://www.zshare.net/audio/6002336026105f00/

I don't think it's that bad. Really like the layered vocals. Pretty mellow but I don't think it sucks. Thanks a bunch BB2 for the link!

i don't think it sucks either. it's too optimistic for my tastes but it's catchy and sweet. i wish it was more playful though. i'd really like a sexy come hither song from her. the layered vocals are nice though.

woops
wrong thread..
edit

The BR song IS going to be on the new album according to stereogum.

It's not the brooding or moody Liz we fell in love with on her earlier stuff, but the songwriting's top-notch and damn infectious. Optimistic and poppy, but not in a cheesy way.

I'm pretty excited. After hearing bits of 'Spoiled Peach' and now this, the new album should be solid. I hope.

First off - BB2 - thanks so much! you rock! Very much appreciated - took one for the team and exposed us all to some new liz!! Thanks for steppin up!!!!

On a darker note:

My New Liz Phair Song Review
By Danny MacDonald, age 31 (soon to be 32)

"don't know where we're going / don't know what we'll do / but you're inside of me darling / I'm inside of you"

"like water needs a river?"

not an analogy worth repeating, but she does it a few times.

The layered vocals and the HINT at the "dull, deep, not-trying-too-hard vocals" we get at the beginning is flat-out mean.
It's a tease.

If this is Liz with "full artistic control" and "feeling creative again" - then I owe the folks at Capitol (including the members of the Matrix) an apology.
It wasn't you.
It was Liz.

She just doesn't want to make compelling music any more. I don't find this stuff compelling.
I find it boring.

Can't even say it sucks. It's just oatmeal.
Without milk. Without brown sugar. And despite the lyrics - not even a whole lot of water.
She's pretty dry.
It's repetative...and the lyrics aren't worth repeating.
This is bland.

I'm sorry. I don't want to be negative.
I had high hopes after hearing the snippet of that "Spoiled Peach" song on 90210 - and i was gearing up to like LIz again.

I would never say - "toss on this album...and skip to Faith and Tenderness."
The song is bland and forgettable.
It is NOTHING of the old Liz...even the "Why I Lie" liz or the "everything between us" liz...she's gone.
This is a machine we are hearing.

Problem number one: It's called Faith and Tenderness.
Problem number two...the guitars... where are they?
It sounds every bit as manufactured - even the layering sounds controlled and tamed.
And the vox... you know what this is ?
This is Nu-Alanis.

It's radio safe. Adult contemp-radio safe. Dentist-office radio safe.

Repetition is so damn boring.

BB2 - thank you - for posting this.

I don't wanna be the one who farts in the perfume shop here - but I have to step up and say - this is on the same level as songs like Lost Tonight, Somebody's Miracle, Take a Look...it's painfully "prom theme song on Dawson's Creek"...or Gossip Girl...or shit - 90201 for that matter (wait - no - that's her OTHER new song).

Fingers crossed for the new record...but if this is gonna be on it, I smell at least one track I'll be skipping over each and every time.

*sigh*

I'm sorry to shit in the cornflakes.
It's just who I am. It's what I do.

Anyone else feel the same?

I need a hug.

*tear*

Ok, after hearing the BR song a few more times...I'm sorry to say, but I have to agree with this post. This ain't memorable or even worthy of her talents.

Oh well.

Maybe it's time for people like me to finally move on from contemporary Liz Phair. She just ain't the same person anymore.

That being said - i listened to the 90210 song again - over the annoying prom chicks...and it sounds REALLY REALLY REALLY cool...like - awesome. I'm pumped for that song.

I still don't think it's THAT bad! Sure it's kinda generic sounding ( Alagia probably fucking produced it! ). I do hope its's one of the weaker tunes on the new album, every album with the exception of the classics have weak tracks, and that the rest of the songs are stronger. If not, I can see why ATO is delaying its' release. I think it's better than fucking Lost Tonight for Christ's sake. IMHO, it's certainly close to on par with Fine Again off of CAGI. Maybe she gave BR this song to use because it works better with their ad campaign. Anywhoo, after hearing the snippets of "Spoiled Peach" I have some hope that if and when this new album is released, it will be respectable.

I'm still crossing my fingers. I've been waiting and waiting for this album to finally drop. 'Spoiled Peach' DOES sound awesome. I've given her the benefit of doubt for this long, so I can muster another wave of hopefulness.

that's exactly how i feel. i kinda expected this, though. after all, she said the ding song song was her favorite from her new stuff...
this sounds like a somebody's miracle throwaway. even the nancy drew song was better.

i won't judge an album i hadn't heard yet by one song, but right now, best i can hope for is a couple of songs i'm not embarassed to listen in front of people. and nothing more.

Well so far I REALLY like the Ding Dong Song and 'Spoiled Peach' and not so hot on 'Faith and Tenderness'. Thats 2 good tunes out of 3. I'm still VERY hopeful for this new album!

Yeah, ugh. The beginning sounds promising and then holy train wreck. I hate these songs that don't have a real melody. Kind of like Rock Me, I guess. Maybe that's not a good example. If there's one thing Liz can do, it's write a classic melody (hello Never Said!). It's kind of sad she doesn't go with her strengths as an artist. And yeah, these lyrics are ass-boring. I don't understand why she doesn't sell these songs to Mandy Moore or something. She could make a killing!
From what I could hear of it, the peach song sounded cool. Liz is gettin' out of prison! Or at least writing character songs again.
I still really want to hear the Julie Johnson songs in their entirety. Remember those? Will those ever come out of the vault?
And does anyone want to lay a bet on whether a Girly Sound song will end up on the album? I would hope for love song. That song is genius.

Ok first off, I LOVE Spoiled Peach, or at least what I've heard of it. Sounds really lo-fi and great.

This song is a train wreck. I liked it the first few listens, but maybe I was listening with rose colored headphones? It's a mess.

It sounds like a tug of war between Liz and the producer. The vocals are great (lyrics not so much); but they sound bizarrely out of place on such polished instrumentation. It's like "if you let me keep my out of tune/ time vocals, you can have the rest of the song." But it doesn't match at all. Who is Liz writing this song for? Herself? A movie soundtrack? This doesn't sound like Liz writing for Liz. It sounds like Liz writing to make money. But Liz writing to make money isn't going to cut it for her anymore.

Maybe my original theory about ATO sending her back to the studio is right, because this doesn't sound like creative/ inspired/ self-produced music. At all. Maybe there will be subpar "singles" on an otherwise decent album. This song isn't Everything To Me bad, but at least that was a straightforwardly cheesy song. This is a cheesy song trying to be three different things. And IS she playing guitar??

No one has mentioned pitchfork's scathing headline, "Awful New Liz Phair Song on Banana Republic Comp."

http://pitchfork.com/news/35341-liz-phair-...ic-compilation/

I DO hope I am wrong when I say this. Maybe it's time for Liz to stick to television soundtracks. She apparently can't write decent songs anymore and even if she does Pitchfuck and all these other music publications just hammer the hell out of her and concentrate on the not so good ones. She can't win either way. Might be time to retire Liz.

Thanks for uploading!

Well, I've listened to it once and it's not bad...at least upon first listen.
We'll see how I feel after listening a few more times.

The song is terrible.

Liz often talks about people being offended by the "production" in her last two cds - but I don't think she appreciates how drastically the quality of her lyrics has declined. That is what bothers me the most because the lyrics are what drew me to her in the first place.

At her best, Liz wrote lyrics that were oblique, weird, provocative, funny and full of personality. Her last great song in that category was Jeremy Engle (and who knows when that was actually written).

And the titles? Faith and Tenderness? Spoiled Peaches?
Depressing.

And all the more frustrating because it really seemed like she was going to make a 180 with this next album. All those hints in the interviews last year. And she looked like she was trying to connect with her roots in the DVD that came with the reissue.

Liz summed it up best in her new song with the line, "I don't know where we're going".
She sounds very lost.

lol scathing reviews, folks
poor liz.

i don't think the song is awful. it might be too earnest, too vanilla but i think it's done well. it's.. (gulp) dreamy and the vocals are lovely. but like i said, i think i appreciate liz more with a sense of humor and a sexy wink. this song does not have that. i wish she decided to put in a sexier song. but i'm convinced it won't be in the new album.

I like it! Thanks for posting, BB2.

I hope you're wrong too. I want a good album. I want something i'll enjoy listening to. I've listened to the song about 15 times - trying to like it... you know what? I don't think I"ll ever listen to it again. Not because it's bad..worse: Because it's boring.

CowboyKate - I think you nailed it. If liz is shamelessly doing this kind of stuff for money - (clearly 90210 is a working job for her) - I don't get WHY she doesn't sell these songs to Mandy Moore and the gang - like you suggested.
She could just become a Linda Perry. She'd add some SERIOUS credibility to pop-tarts looking to break into a more adult contemporary/cooler market - and liz would make the big, respected "musician name" for herself that she always wanted.

Look what linda perry did for Christina Aguellera (sp?)...i never gave two shits for Christina, but when that "Beautiful" song came out - i rememeber thinking: "Huh. You know...this song isn't HORRIBLE...and she can KINDA sing."
Beautiful isn't an amazingly awesome song by any means - and had Linda Perry actually done it - i would have barfed in my lap...but - when she gives those songs to artists like Pink (Or is it P!nk?) and Christina...and then goes on to become this amazing hitmaker of a producer...and give shitty artists a cool sound...well - i have nothing but respect for that.
it's honest. it keeps her working. it rakes in the cash. it keeps her name in there. it probably even allows her to write shamelessly cheesey songs - because she knows it won't be her face and voice on them.
it's a win-win.
And you know - she writes UBER good songs and saves the little gems for a future solo record...or perhaps a 4 Non Blondes reunion? i'm drifting.
Liz should have done this the last 9 years. if Liz Phair was a Linda Perry...i would consider it smart. 90210 - is smart.
I love that she works w/ 90210.
Releasing a shite song...is stupid.
who does she think her audience is, really? like - what is the point?
Is she just doing it for the bad reviews? What does she expect??
would liz phair listen to music like that? i thought she had better taste.
think of how her post WCSE career could have gone:
had she given the s/t album to Avril Lavigne - and maybe handed over 70 percent of Somebody's Miracle to Sheryl Crow....still released Comeandgetit and maybe another ep of the 4 decent songs on Somebody's Miracle...she'd be an ENTIRELY different artist.
but...it didn't work out that way.
she can still make it out okay, but she needs to decide RIGHT NOW:

Does she want to make money?
Does she want to be a rock star?
Does she want to be an artist?

The three can rarely share the same flat without cat fights.

thoughts?

Crow would never accept liz's hand me downs and Wild Hope is so beyond what liz has been doing since 2002 that I highly doubt mandy would.

agreed. i just haven't been a SHeryl Crow fan since the self-titled record.

I kinda hope this song is just a left over track its pretty weak.

As bad as this song is, I must say that I woke up with Spoiled Peach stuck in my head. That's a great song! I think everyone is so pissed about Faith And Tenderness because just a day before a really great Liz song premiered. Maybe she or ATO will read this and cut the song from the album! In Liz's own words, this song, like Somebody's Miracle, sounds like a "fucking compromise disaster."

Edit: I'm listening to it again. It's not so bad. The quality of this mp3 sounds awful, but it doesn't sound like there are a ton of tracks. The reverbed/ distorted guitars don't sound like Liz, but maybe they are. If Liz is playing, it's the really distorted track on the left channel. The pre-chorus is cool, kind of early 90's R.E.M-ish. Again, I think Spoiled Peach tainted us a little bit. The lyrics are on par or better than Everything Between Us, and lots of people like that song. The chorus is a bit much, but maybe in the context of an album this song won't be so bad.

I don't think it's terrible. Rather unmemorable though. The verses are okay, but the bridge and chorus are just mind-numbingly boring.

I agree. I am tainted by Spoiled Peach. I was seriously kind of always taking all the "this album is going to be good - for real" hype with a grain of salt. but when i heard the Spoiled PEach track...i was honestly believing it.
This song though...came at the worst possible time.
it was like "A Liz Phair High" and then "A Liz Phair low" within seconds of each other.
I do like the Ding Dong song as well...can't wait to hear that w/ minor prod and some layers...so.. 2 out of 3...it just sucks though. I hope she doesn't think she has to make songs like "Faith and Tenderness" - dear god...the title alone.
who the hell names a song "Faith and Tenderness" -
honestly - i'd excuse it if it were fuckin' Michael Bolton or something.

"Faith & Tenderness: A Michael Bolton Collection".

Ugh.

Liz has always good at pandering to a specific audience. No matter what she is trying to do. I think since its for Banana Republic I have hope this was just her trying to make a song for BR. It might be on the album, but I really think it was her trying to fit the mold for that song. Ding Dong and Spoiled Peach are way too different than Faith & Tenderness.

This is true. We saw that with Perfect Misfit. I don't think anyone thought that this was going to be her new musical direction. Then again, Faith and Tenderness is going on the album.

Alright, so I put this song on my ipod and must say it's a grower. Usually my favorite albums tend to be growers, so this is a good thing. I remember thinking wcse sounded cheesy the first few listens, and now that album is a very very close second to Guyville as far as favorite albums are concerned. This isn't a very produced song (much less produced than a lot of stuff on wcse) and I think in the context of an album it could be really good. I think again we're all still coming off the high of Spoiled Peach and were a little mean to this song. Maybe I'm wrong, I don't know.

I liked it, then after thinking about it a little too hard, changed my mind. Listening to it right now... and I dig it. I really do. As far as the REM-vibe goes... right on! It reminds me of "Bang and Blame" from MONSTER, as far as the sound and instrumentation goes, and if you think about it, you can actually hear Mike Stipe on the "I need you here..." lines.

Anyway, count me in the folks with high hopes for the next album... I bet we hear something soon! Why else would there be this song and "Spoiled Peach" in the same week?

I too just put it on my ipod and after having listened to it I'm alot less critical of it. I will say it sounds pretty damn good compared to my crappy computer speakers. I really like the layered vocals, very nice touch. Pimp is right about the production, it's definately less produced than alot of stuff on Spaceegg and DEFINATELY less produced than anything on the self titled and Miracle. It most certainly is not a 'terrible' song by any means. FUCK PITCHFORK!! To some on here maybe a touch boring or a snooze fest but IMHO, better than alot of the stuff on the self titled or SM. I also agree with Pimp that that just may be Liz strumming the distorted guitar on the track. With 'Spoiled Peach' and 'Ding Dong', which I REALLY dig!! LOVE Liz's Falsetto on that one, being standout tracks, I'm becoming more and more hopeful that this album is going to be solid. If 'Faith And Tenderness" is the worst we're going to hear on this album, I'll be ok with it.

i put in my ipod as well and i've been listening to it a lot. i really like it more than i thought i did than the first time i heard it. it's really, again, dreamy and i love the layered harmonies. and dan, you hate the production but man, the production on this is really similar to juliana's how to walk away album. i mean, this is actually less... lush. yeah, juliana put a lot more melancholy and thought in her lyrics but still, production wise, it's basically the same thing. "faith and tenderness" sounds a little like sixties in the verses. it's the chorus that it goes all coldplay on us. but the chorus is really catchy. i really cannot get it out of my head.

that said, i hope and i'm convinced the album will not have the optimistic, love is good viewpoint in all the songs. i still think the songs will show liz in her good ol' lacerating side.

Hmmm. Well, the song title alone pretty much obliterated any expectations I may have had. It sounds like a Somebody's Miracle song with less polish. I don't hate it. I probably should, but after the last 2 albums it really doesn't seem that offensive. Like other posters I have wondered: who is she making music for, who does she think her audience is, wtf is she thinking??? etc. Who the fuck knows. There really is no point for her to still be writing radio singles-I really can't see ATO doing the whole payola thing, which we all know is how Liz got airplay during her pop phase. The only way Liz is going to be able to rebuild her fanbase is to start making good records again. She's basically starting from scratch. She had a good thing (a large following) and she blew it (the last 2 albums). For someone who always seemed to be career minded, Liz's choices really do not make a lot of sense.

re: Linda Perry, etc:
I thought Liz did mention, after SM, that she was writing songs for a new (country?) artist, saying that it was an outlet for her to express her more juvenile thoughts. Does anyone else remember this? Obviously nothing ever came of it...

Does this answer your question?

http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Club/2471/00000381.html

wow, liz listens to dr.dre!!! hahahaha...

wooden - good call on the comparrison to juliana's how to walk away (as far as production goes)...i love the lushness...but - it's the lyrics. and the chorus. it's just so bland. i don't find the blandness w/ juliana.
maybe it's just a matter of taste. different strokes for different folks. i find "Faith and Tenderness" (still shiver when i say the title) bland...
...i agree w/ Pitchfork. but - still VERY hopeful for the rest of the album. i am. totally hopefully. Ding Dong and Spoiled Peach...bring it ON!