Alanis Morissette - Jagged Little Pill *ANGUS*

I know I did an Alanis Morissette post a month or two ago, but I had to do another just for her album "Jagged Little Pill" alone. Since that last post, I've bought both JLP and its followup, "Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie". Both albums are great, but my favorite of the two is Jagged Little Pill. Many consider Michael Jackson's "Thriller" to be the perfect pop album, and I agree. Well, JLP is the "Thriller" of grungy, alternative pop. It's perfect from start to finish, with strong lyrics that convey emotion and good messages. Alanis' voice can be grating to some, and she does overdo it a few times on this album for the sake of being unique, but I think her voice is perfect for the type of music on the album.

At the time, everyone labeled her as the 'angry man-hating chick' because of the song "You Oughta Know", but that was such generalized label. She was/is much more than just an angry woman, and she certainly isn't a man-hater (just listen to "Head Over Feet", which is very much a love song). Topics range from trying to find your way in life ("All I Really Want", "Hand In My Pocket") to troubles in Alanis' past, such as pressure from her parents to be "Perfect" and the confusion of her Catholic upbringing in "Forgiven". Despite the fact that she was only 21 at the time, Alanis seemed to be very mature, something that she probably had to adapt to survive as a teenager in the scary music business (in case you didn't know, Alanis was a star in Canada and had two dance-pop albums before moving to the US and writing JLP).

When JLP was released in 1996, it took the world by surprise and demanded attention. I was only 3 at the time, and I wish I had been old enough to see the whole craze when Alanis was on top of the world. However, I have more than made up for lost time; I have listened to this album more than any other over the past 2 months, and I'm sure I'll continue to listen to JLP for years to come. If you don't have it already, I'd definetly recommend buying Alanis Morissette's "Jagged Little Pill".

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