"You Oughta Know," the lead single from Alanis Morissette's 1996 debut Jagged Little Pill, served as one of the most bitter and emotional attacks on an ex-boyfriend to ever hit pop music. Burned by her man, Alanis turned towards the mic to deliver a searing tongue-in-cheek tirade to vent her frustration. The album took off based on the success of the single and its follow-ups "Ironic," "Hand in My Pocket" and "All I Really Want," making it one of the best-selling albums by a female singer to ever be released.Alanis is back twelve years later with her fifth album Flavors of Entanglement, undoubtedly inspired by her breakup with ex-fiance Ryan Reynolds. But instead of relapsing into "bitter ex" mode, Alanis takes the high road and channels her spiritual side into this 11-track journey through self-realization, acceptance and maturation, using everything from Bhangra rhythms to electronic drum kits to assist her in expressing her emotions.
Flavors starts out with the thumping "Citizens of the Planet," a track that flows from Eastern-influenced verses to a grungy power-rock chorus, floating along on the strength of an amalgamation of strings. Alanis continues her spiritual journey on the ethereal "Moratorium," featuring double-time electronic drums and the chorus, "I declare a moratorium on things relationship / I declare a respite from the toils of liaison / I do need a breather from the flavors of entanglement / I declare a full time out from all things commitment."
3
somewhat of a different "feeling" to her, and it's nice to see
artists evolve.