The summer’s here, the sun’s out, and there’s just this general overall feeling that life on earth is pretty good right now. So what better time to visit one of the best “summer” albums of the past 15 years, an often forgotten gem of laid back guitars, baggy beats and chilled out rhythms known as “Jagged Little Pill.”

Listening to Alanis Morrisette’s award winning album manages the almost impossible task of sounding just as fresh ten years after its release, whilst at the same time capturing the beauty of those hazy summer evenings in 1995, chilling out on grass verges at music festivals, one hand loosely wrapped around a bottle of beer, no longer caring that grunge is dead and trying not to worry too much that we were now stuck with this “Britpop” thing. As the intro to opening song “All I Really Want” slides into gear, you’re instantly reminded of waking up at noon on a lazy Sunday afternoon, dragging the curtains back and being greeted by a warm sun, blue sky and good vibes, knowing that from here, things can only get better.
And here on “Jagged Little Pill”, they certainly do.

Gliding gently into the first track from the album to be lifted as a single, “You Oughta Know” picks up the tempo a bit, a fat bass-line carrying along a funkier lite-grunge anthem before relaxing again with indie-ballad, “Perfect.” “And what it all comes down to, is that everything’s gonna be fine fine fine,” sings Alanis on one of her biggest singles “Hand In My Pocket” and its hard not believe her. For even though her voice has this harsh, raw (yet still melodic) quality to it, as it glides over beautiful guitar-filled landscapes you can’t help but be filled with optimism.  Sure bad stuff happens, but it all works out in the end.

They say that “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned” and it’s tempting to smear that term all over Alanis’ deeply personal lyrics, though to do so wouldn’t do her words justice. Sure, there’s been at least one bloke that’s messed our girl around at some point, yet rather than curling up on the sofa with a cup of hot chocolate and sobbing her heart out to her girlfriends, Alanis grabs a great big load of that aforementioned optimism, wraps her heart tightly around her sleeve, and marches back into the world with her head held high. “You live, you learn” she wails on track seven (titled, funnily enough, “You Learn”, shrugging her shoulders as she sings brutally honest lines such as: “I recommend getting your heart trampled on to anyone,” erm, I think I’ll pass, thanks love.

Yet, should it happen to me against my own will, I’m sure I could be instantly cured by a Jagged Little Pill.

Recommended Links: www.alanis.com

► Return to Album Reviews
► Return to Entertainment
 

Trust Home Page | About Us | Leisure | Culture | Tourism | Sport | Arts | Libraries | Contact Us