Phoning It In

Rizzo, “Phoning It In” (Sympathy, 2001)
A brilliantly one-of-a-kind thing, and one of the true great lost indie records of the ‘00s. Rizzo was two girls from L.A., drums guitar and vocals. Picture a midway point between the ragged-but-right minimal strum-beat-pop of the Pacific Northwest (Beat Happening, All Girl Summer Fun Band, etc.) and the whip-smart tough-girl glamor of ‘90s L. A. (Muffs, That Dog, L7). But even better. Catty, compassionate, angry, hurt, funny, brave, this captures an entire moment in time on Earth, in America, as history turned. And 9 (“I Know It’s Late”) and 10 ( “Right Side Of The Tracks”) are among the most astonishing, heart-on-target songs about separation and longing I’ve ever heard; they’re a pair, and should be played consecutively. Also great: 2, 6 (“Spin This”), 7, 11, 12