Singing along with her music is virtually impossible.

I love the new CD...it is her best in years. But, damn, she is just too literate for her own good. Between her non-rhyming or odd rhyme schemes, her almost too personal and really specific lyrics, and her adding extra syllables where there are not supposed to be (label-led, really?!), singing along with most of her songs is almost impossible. You just sound like an idiot doing it which doesn't stop me from trying.

Alanis rocks but damn she needs to dumb it down a little. And I have a Master's in English.

i say good for her. more people should do something better with their lyrics.
even prince is dumbing down quite heavily lately.

the problem though, like you mentioned is not that her lyrics are too clever
to understand it's just that she writes in a really weird way. it works for
her but it's quite bizarre imo.

people will probably laugh, but if she made some changes to her writing she
could be a sort of new joni mitchell imo. that's how good some of her lyrics
are.

ISNT IT IRONIC

Most of the songs on "Jagged Little Pill" are written in much more of a standard format...recognizable rhyme schemes, personal lyrics but not ones that seemed so insular that they were almost like in-jokes, etc. Subsequent albums have gotten her deeper and deeper into her bag of fancy words and ultra-biographical references. Which is not to say she is not a good songwriter, she is, but methinks sometimes she tries to sound just a wee bit clever than she might necessarily need to.

I know I'm the minority, but I think this new album's a snoozer...too much emphasis on atmosphere and not enough on melody

GottaLetitgo said:

This is a quirky part of her speech that I hate and adore

IstenSzek said:

Everyone has their 'niche" and that is hers, like Michael Stipe also, who really writes in riddles and at times, writes poems that always rhyme. Just like Radiohead who dont write "hooks" and choruses and things like that, where others can nail things like that without even trying.

GottaLetitgo said:

I agree that's why I love her first record. Her later records not as much. I'm all for writing intelligent thoughtful lyrics, but as someone else said she writes too many words that don't seem to fit into the music so it's hard to sing along.

You mentioned loving Alanis Morrissette's first record, by which I assume you mean "Jagged Little Pill". You might be surprised to find out that this was not in fact her first record.

Us Canadians know her dirty little secret. Before her subversively intellectual and cathartically angry days, Alanis Morrissette used to be a bit of an urban popster here in Canada. She went by simply "Alanis". I suggest you Youtube the video for "Too Hot" from 1991 for a good chuckle.

Haley said:

Jagged Little Pill was her first record released here in the U.S. It's obvious that's what I was talking about. People were trying to have a nice intelligent conversation about her work. And you jump in on a silly technical point. Do you enjoy being a jerk and annoying people and saying something that is really irrelevant to what people are talking about?
I'm actually aware that she did dance/pop albums in Canada but they weren't released here until later. I've heard some of her dance/pop albums and I think they are catchy and fun. They're not embarassing at all. They're fun in the vein of early Madonna, Kylie and Britney. I don't hold that against her as you seem to.

I'm truly sorry Glindathegood! I honestly didn't mean it that way at all. I was just trying to offer a quirky little tid-bit to a fellow Alanis Morrissette fan. I wasn't trying to insinuate that you lacked knowledge about anything. I just thought it was interesting and relevant in that it showed another side to Alanis Morrissette and her work. And I agree with you 100%. I don't think there's anything embarrassing about her early work. I think it's a delightful guilty pleasure and it was right in step with the times. I appreciate it myself.

Once again, I'm so sorry if my intention was misconstrued and I'm sorry for derailing the discussion. I just thought people might find it interesting and funny.

Cheers and Peace!

I guess it's one of the pains of written communication! The cheerful expression and friendly tone in my voice aren't apparent.

Ah, geez. I feel terrible. I really didn't mean to upset anybody.

Apology accepted. Sorry for any misunderstanding.

lastdecember said:

The Michael Stipe comparison is a good one. I like R.E.M. as well and there are quite a few songs that I love by them that I don't understand at all. I have been trying to figure out "Nightswimming" for quite some time now with no success. Stipe likes to play more with images and Alanis likes to play more with how words sound. Both are really in their own heads.

I've been singing along with "Tapes" and "Incomplete" for the past week!

GottaLetitgo said:

Exactly, i remember when Eddie Vedder gave the speech inducting REM into the RRHOF, he basically said he spent the whole summer after "murmur" came out listening to not only the music, but wondering what the fuck he was talking about. That is the greatness of someone like Stipe, and why bands/singers like that dont get the "mass" following, mainly because the masses arent into thought.

I haven't listened to Alanis Morisette or Michael Stipe/R.E.M. with the exception of their commercial/mainstream released, but I can tell you one thing about myself if this disposition of theirs reigns true: I failed in college and "HATE" when people know more than I do. That goes for my elders, too. I don't exactly want to be a know-it-all. But I also don't want to be a dumbass. Something tells me I wouldn't want to hear them, especially if I'm not capable of understanding. Growing up, it took me until I was about at the age of six years old before I was able to apply myself in the art of discourse by "FINALLY" being able to structure a "COMPLETE" sentence; both dexterously and verbally. So, I wasn't big into the whole dictionary thing. Instead, I'd learn to broaden my vocabulary (Subconsciously, mind you.) by interpreting new words that I would just so happen to hear from my favorite network television/premium broadcasted shows in my own little way. Dangerous as it is, it happened to work for me, half the time. But then I got to Journalism and learned that I was a dumbass. Long story short, I'm fucked for life. Good day.....
[Edited 6/28/08 14:47pm]

TILL I'M PSEUDOMAKINGIT!