Since 1998s bold Little Plastic Castle, folk punk pioneer Ani Difranco has rattled off a string of disappointing albums that have just not lived up to past works of the early to mid 90s. Educated Guess was being billed as Aniís most Stripped down work since 1991s Not So Soft, and stripped down it definitely is. But stripped down does not necessarily mean good, and Educated Guess is not a good album. It lacks raw emotion, and it also has none of the vigor that Difranco is widely known for. The songs are
played at a boring pace, and in most of them, the guitars are not even in tune. The poetry that is sprinkled in between songs is shambled, and lacks any type forethought that's necessary for anyone to even care about it. Educated Guess as a whole is giant mess that feels completely stale, and is probably her worst album to date. This makes three sub par albums for her now, and when she is going to pull herself out of this funk is "anyone's guess."