The Second Time Just Gets Better

****; LIZ PHAIR, “Whip-Smart” ( Matador )

Liz Phair is back with a highly anticipated second album after catching the attention of the indie-rock world with last year’s provocative debut, “Exile in Guyville.”

That album was structured after the Rolling Stones’ “Exile on Main Street,” Phair’s lyrics answering the Stones’ lines song by song. Her individual and female perspective hit a chord with listeners and put the Chicago-based artist at the top of the critics’ polls around the country.

The 27-year-old now proves that she can thrive outside the familiar structure of a classic album. On “Whip-Smart” she takes up where “Guyville” left off, bringing us to date on what’s been happening in her life--love and otherwise.

Phair opens the 14-track album with a song about a would-be one-night stand--an experience dashed by her own timidity. Perhaps Phair is revealing this shyness to counter impressions of her that grew out of the forthright sexual subject matter on her last album.

She also sings lovingly about her new boyfriend (“Your eyelashes sparkle like gilded grass, and your lips are sweet and slippery like a cherub’s bare wet ass”) as well as her struggles with new insecurities (“You’re not satisfied looking at me, you’re always checking out the girl behind.”).

Phair’s voice still hits those characteristically flat notes that make her unique and real as an artist, stretching for rich lows and then unreachable highs. As her voice wavers between those dimensions, it reveals myriad emotions as well as striking harmonies.

Her tunes go from the simplicity of “Chopsticks” to the groovy, Monkee-esque shimmy of “Jealousy” to the hypnotic, jump-roping rhythms of the title tune.

There are all sorts of surprising hidden effects--from a cacophony of jungle noises to a groovy ‘60s vibe to an almost crispy hiss. Producer Brad Wood plays a lot of the music too, pitting slightly askew instrumentation against Phair’s guitar work.

“Whip-Smart” is a brilliant sophomore effort that confirms Phair as a revolutionary force rather than just a girlie phenomenon.

New albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent).