Bijou Phillips

I’d Rather Eat Glass (Almo)
by Michael McCarthy

On her debut disc, supermodel turned singer Bijou Phillips does a lot of purging. Especially for an 18-year-old. Most of the songs are guitar-driven pop/rock music. Some, like the cynical “I Own You” and “Polite,” could be about her own tabloid-documented life – or they could be about your life. And they’ve clearly been written (by Phillips and a handful of seasoned songwriters) in such a way that you have to wonder if she’s referencing herself or merely telling stories. “Hawaii,” an extremely catchy tune that uses said place as a metaphor for bad relationships, is a good example of this. But other songs are clearly autobiographical (and,ahem, the press notes point it out just in case reviewers are too stoned to figure it out for themselves). The best example there is is the album’s only piano and vocals track, “Little Dipper,” in which she freely recalls visits to her mother’s, sniffing her bindles (cocaine vials) and bonnets. As she makes these recollections, her voice mixes childhood innocence with angst, and the result sounds like an early Tori Amos covering something from Jewel’s first album.

Ultimately, her vocals are a bit more in the vein of Liz Phair, only with more melody about them. And when she dabbles in trip-hop on “So Tired” and brings along funky percussion for “Mermaid and the Earthman,” Ani DiFranco fans will likely rejoice. But enough with comparisons. What needs to be stressed here is that Phillips has concocted an invigorating album that sounds youthful, if not entirely magical, while still coming across like the work of a seasoned pro. I hope its title is speaking in opposition to resurrecting her modeling career, because it would be a shame if Phillips fails to produce subsequent discs.
(360 North La Cienaga Los Angeles, CA 90048)