Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 06/10/2008
The running joke goes like this: as soon as
Alanis Morissette suffered a heartbreak like she did prior to
Jagged Little Pill, she would once again write lyrics as vitriolic as confessional as that 1995 breakthrough. As any tabloid follower knows -- and really, in the new millennium we all follow the tabloids whether we like it or not --
Alanis split from fiancé
Ryan Reynolds after the release of 2004's
So-Called Chaos, an album that floated joyously on her newfound love, so it's no great stretch to see its 2008 follow-up,
Flavors of Entanglement, as its opposite, a classic breakup record. And it is, filled with songs of heartbreak, anger, and regret, along with a healthy dose of self affirmation -- or at least it seems that way, as
Alanis' words are harder than ever to parse, a mangled web of garbled syntax, overheated metaphors, and mystifying verbal contortions all requiring too much effort to decode. In that sense, it's a lot like
Jagged Little Pill, but musically this is far closer to the muddled mystic worldbeat of
Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, thanks in large part to her collaboration with
Guy Sigsworth, best known for his productions with
Björk and
Madonna. Given his résumé, it should come as no great surprise that
Sigsworth gives
Flavors of Entanglement some adventurous textures and drum loops, even electronically altered voices on occasion, but this is no dance record; it's a claustrophobic, cluttered adult pop album underpinned by a hazy new age sensibility, best heard (if not best articulated) on
"Citizen of the Planet," a thick swirling dirge which serves as an appropriate opening salvo for this dense murk, where the music is almost as impenetrable as the lyrics. Coming after the streamlined
Under Rug Swept and light
So-Called Chaos, this return to insularity is a bit startling yet it's welcome, both for those who find a personal connection within
Alanis' accidentally cryptic confessions and those who like to listen to her ramblings with their mouths agape, as this overspills with emotional and musical dissonance, the kind that made her phenomenal success on
Jagged Little Pill improbable and her slow descent into high-end liberal lifestyle music after
Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie quite understandable.
~Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Average Review:
Number of reviews: 3
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crazeypoet
from PA
Great to Have Alanis Back!
I'm really excited about this new album. Louder, rockin tracks hang out with pretty ones and they blend to form an outstanding record. Favorite tracks include Citizen of the Planet, Torch, and Versions of Violence. Definitely check them out. It's nice to have an album, however, that I can listen to straight through without skipping tracks. This is one of those albums! It's beautiful and strong. Listening to this album brings me back to the feelings I had for Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie. The lyrics are raw and heartfelt. This is just so so good. You should really be listening to it by now!
A reviewer
from North Carolina
Good musician, good album....
Overall, I thought this was a very good album. I was hoping for a sound more like Alanis's "Jagged Little Pill" days (I STILL listen to those songs over and over) but this was much different. Different isn't always a bad thing and this album definitely demonstrated that. I felt it was a very emotional, heartfelt album. If you weren't familiar with Alanis Morissette before, you can kind of get a feel for some of her personal conflicts & emotions here. I felt that she really expressed herself well and compiled a very good album! Alanis rocks! :)
A reviewer
from Someplace, VA
Alanis is back and better than ever
Alanis Morissette’s new album “Flavor of Entanglement” has the deeply personal songs and undeniable vocal talent that we have come to expect from Alanis, but this is not the same 20 something Alanis full of rage. This CD is very much about her personal break up with Ryan Reynolds. But this CD is so much more that your average “love gone wrong” songs. Alanis is older, more mature, and more introspective. She sees how the battles of the world are really not that different than the battles we have in our personal life. She is not only trying to find her place in relationships, she is trying to find her place in the world. At first listen, her lyrics are so deeply personal, it gives you that moment of “oh I shouldn’t be hearing this” but at the same time it resonates to the universal, familiar grief we all feel with the death of a relationship. Gone is the in you face rage and it is replaced with longing and grief.
All of the songs, regardless of topic reflect an artist that has experienced much growth and continues to growth through the good times and the bad.
Overall, this is a CD full of the new and of the familiar. Alanis’ unmistakable voice and painfully personal song lyrics are as familiar on this cd as on all of her albums. This album reflects a personal and artistic growth. She has more depth and more understanding of herself and the music reflects it. The music itself has many more dimensions . Like different parts of her personality, Alanis is able to skillfully mix and highlight sounds that seem like complete contradictions, but the end result is pure music to my ears.
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