Album Review: Alanis Morissette - Havoc and Bright Lights

Alanis Morissette
Havoc and Bright Lights
Rating: Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It

By this stage in Alanis Morissette's career you know what you are going to get with her, and you are either going to stick with her or just idly stroll on by. Gone is that first note of shock and surprise when her debut shot to the top of the charts and took over the airwaves, and left is a slightly awkward singer/songwriter that, while gangly at times, still has some charms left in her arsenal. Her latest release Havoc and Bright Lights is her most consistent album in years, that mostly forgoes her usual "list this list that" lyrical schemes and awkward syntax, and goes for a more direct approach that suits her better. The album, produced by Guy Sigsworth, who produced her previous album, Flavors of Entanglement, and Joe Chiccarelli, doesn't quite stick to a one style for too long, favoring a more diverse set of tracks, that ultimately comes across as too much of a grab bag and not very cohesive, but there are still some really nice pop tracks.

Highlights on the album are the catchy, sparkling guitar-pop of lead single "Guardian,"



the darker, throbbing pulse of the cautionary drug tale "Numb,"



the epic mid-tempo ballad "Edge of Evolution,"



and the trip-hop/grunge hybrid of "Celebrity."



Of course being an Alanis album there are going to be a few outright clunkers. Treacly ballad "Til You" would make Diane Warren pass out from sugar overload,



the feather-light pop of "Spiral,"



or the a little too up for people feeling given off by "Win And Win."



But for the most part, the record sticks to providing sterling melodies and soaring choruses, like the wonderful "Receive"



and the shimmering "Lens,"



while still allowing moments of raw tenderness, as on the beautiful ballad "Havoc."

Surprisingly, Havoc and Bright Lights avoids most of her usual pitfalls and ultimately is a very solid set of adult pop tracks. I doubt Alanis will ever be as massively popular as she once was, but this record proves that she still can put together a collection of tracks that are memorable and catchy, and stands strong along the Katy Perry's and Kelly Clarkson's of the world.

Rating Scale:

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and piques one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.