Most people will have not heard of Canadian artist 'Alanis' until 1995 when her bitterly honest, confessional style of songwriting sent her album "Jagged Little Pill" rocketing up the charts across the world and catapulted her into the limelight. Considering the brutal honesty of "Jagged Little Pill" it is almost bizarre to consider how she was once a huge star in Canada, putting out Paula Abdul-esque pop/dance tracks until something changed. Alanis cites moving to L.A. and growing up fast because of it which then allowed her to write with more maturity and to put honest, very personal thoughts into her songs which before hadn't been forthcoming. She certainly does that all right and in 1998, 3 years after the release of her first album as the confessional Alanis Morissette, she released the much awaited follow up album "Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie"...to mixed reaction. Still undeniably an Alanis Morissette album, it was almost entirely inaccessible to all but the most ardent fans and for me at least, turned me away from her work for a while. Rather than rushing to purchase her third album "Under Rug Swept" as I had done "Supposed...", I more stumbled upon it around a week ago and on the strength of, what I thought was the rather average radio friendly single "Hands Clean", decided to give it a go. Good choice as it turns out.

Two stonkingly good tracks down we are lead into two more which highlight more clearly than anything else the maturity of the new Alanis with the poorly titled "At That Particular Time" and "Flinch" which follows straight afterwards. Anyone who listened to Jagged Little Pill (and there were at least 28 million of you) would have heard the superb, yet incredibly vindictive track "You Oughta Know" with it's accusatory bitching and snarling, packed with recriminations, blame and full on anger at a broken relationship...which pretty much sums up the entirety of "Jagged..." for that matter. Compare that to the gentle, yet more effective "At That Particular Time" which speaks once more of a failed relationship but with pain and regret and more than a little guilt and the differences are quite stark. "At That Particular Time" is a simple, yet stirring ballad which most strikingly of all perhaps when you consider all the blame which has preceded it, is the acceptance of self-guilt and past mistakes in that relationship from Alanis herself. This is a truly beautiful track, showcasing how Alanis' voice has progressed with simply piano and synthesiser accompaniment as support.

Erm, did I say Alanis had moved on? Precious Illusions unleashes the demons once more, but the venting is more palatable here because its the exception rather than the norm...and of course Precious Illusions is also a damn fine track which helps sugar the bitterness. Strings introduce this edgy track, but a heavy electronic arrangement soon kicks in as well, thumping through the chorus and beefing up the verses. Initially restrained, but barbed, Alanis' vocals feel like nothing more than the portent of the thumping choruses to come, rising to crescendo to meet them. This is a typical example of one of Alanis' more rock-based tracks, but with a new musical maturity, it's also one you'll be tempted to sing along to...no matter how loudly ;o)

Throw into that mix the single "Hands Clean", a pure piece of bubblegum rock, with quick-fire subtly vocalised verses sung over crisp acoustic strings leading into a barnstorming chorus. I would have expected a radio friendly track like this to have done a lot better than it did but I think Alanis alienated quite a few fans with her previous album and it might have taken more than just one single to win them back. Hands Clean is the kind of "everybody-friendly" track which you either love or are indifferent to, there is no hate. Personally, I think it sounds like typical radio rock, accessible but no surprises. Along the same lines comes the foot tapping "Surrendering", which is great to sing along to and erm, 'has a good beat' with a slight country feel to it. I would have thought this was another which might have been earmarked for release as a single..but with all the attention I pay to the charts it just may have been already! "Surrendering" is a distinctly upbeat sing-a-longa-Alanis track, nothing too surprising in arrangement, but very listener friendly.

(Thanks to kelkoo.com for the price comparison info.)