When Alanis Morissette first leapt into the limelight, back in 1995, the word most often associated with her work was "angry."
Thanks largely to the emotional resonance teen-age girls found in the vengeful intensity of "You Oughta Know," Morissette's breakthrough single, the singer was hailed as a new kind of feminist hero, an angry young woman who stood as the distaff equivalent to alt-rock's tortured young men. Never mind that many of the songs on "Jagged Little Pill," her debut album, didn't quite fit this pigeonhole; as far as the pundits were concerned, Morissette's aesthetic could be boiled down to "you live, you learn/you rage, you burn."
Morissette, however, would not be so easily categorized. "Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie," released just over a year ago, supplanted her first album's fury with spirituality and self-reflection. Now, "MTV Unplugged" (Maverick 47589, arriving in stores today) goes a step further and recasts the wrath of those early songs as wisdom and transcendence.
Not for nothing does the album open with the low-key jauntiness of "You Learn." As her band eases into an almost jazzy shuffle, Morissette advises, "I recommend getting your heart trampled on/To anyone."
Where once the lyric seemed infused with the bitterness of hard-won experience Morissette now presents the song as a saga of goodness and growth. It's almost as if she believes that the only way we can become better is by occasionally doing stupid things, and that she who dares most, gains most.
Or, to quote the second verse: "I recommend biting off more than you can chew/To anyone."
"MTV Unplugged" itself doesn't find Morissette biting off much in the way of new material. Although three of the album's dozen titles are making their first appearance on CD, none are exactly new. The moody, discursive "No Pressure Over Cappuccino" made its first appearance in Morissette's repertoire during the "Jagged Little Pill" tour, while both "Princes Familiar" and "These R the Thoughts" were written for (though not included on) "Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie."
Then again, this album seems less about breaking new ground than shattering old stereotypes. After a year on the road, touring behind the "Infatuation Junkie" album, Morissette has settled into a comfortable, confident groove, offering a stage presence as powerful as on her first tour, yet operating on an entirely different wavelength.
