“I like anger”confides Alanis Morissette in an interview published on the occasion of the release of her latest studio opus, Such Pretty Forks in the Road
As with many, major projectsAlanis Morissette in 2020 could not succeed. After the success of the musical Jagged Little Pillwhich was a hit on Broadway earlier this year, she was also due to release her first album in eight years, the highly anticipated Such Pretty Forks in the Roadin May 2020 (it was finally released at the end of the year), then touring for the 25th anniversary of his third album, now cult.
Introspection reigns on this new album. It seems well suited to our times. How did you feel when he was rejected?
Alanis Morissette: I just thought there was no need to reveal my personal life to you while we are in the middle of a pandemic. I got different feedback on this. I was told to get out now. Others asked me to push him away, to give him every chance… I made a decision.
At 20, you sang: “I haven’t solved everything yet”. It seems like the message of this album is that it’s always ok to feel this way, even later in life.
Yes, and there is this running gag quite “spiritual” that comes to mind. I realized that it was far too egocentric to want All to understand. If I try to take control of everything, knowing what I’m going to consume, who I’m going to meet, who I’m going to marry… There will always be this pain, this hunger; and for me, this is where we must give the spiritual a chance. I wrote a song called “Would Not Come” (from the album Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, released in 1998, editor’s note) on a similar theme. If you continue to stay at the same level, you cannot grow, change your behavior. Have a revelation.
“There’s so much information (in my head) all the time, that I feel like I’m selfish. »
“Reasons I Drink” is a very honest song about addiction. What were you thinking when you wrote it?
There is a big tendency to blame people who have billions of addictions. But the center of it all is people – myself included – who are simply looking for relief from being outsiders. And then there are those of us who become truly addicted… This addiction starts and you feel like it wants to help you, eventually it kills you. For those who have an addiction of any kind – to work, to sex, to alcohol, to any kind of drug – I have a lot of empathy.
In “Losing The Plot,” you sing about insomnia. Is this a big deal for you?
I have a very sensitive temperament. Especially with a child almost eight months old. I breastfeed all night. And then I’m in full postpartum activity. The first two times I experienced this, I remember having symptoms of depression. This time, it’s minimal. But yes, whatever happens, sleep is rare for me. I sleep whenever I can, which isn’t much I grant you, but enough to keep me going.
If I didn’t have some solo time, there’s no way I’m going to sleep. My thoughts wake me up and tell me: “Come on, write about it!” » Whenever there is something really important to me that isn’t done, I don’t sleep. This is the most creative time! Because everyone is sleeping, I can kind of take the mask off. I can really follow my intuition and enter into this new creative state. Whether it’s a word or an idea, something to edit or design for the future.
While working on the musical Jagged Little Pill, you have found the 19/20 year old Alanis. What would you say to him?
I would just like to express the desire for her to have more people around her. It was a pretty lonely time. I remember, at every festival I went to, there were like 72 male groups… and Alanis Morissette. (laughs) It got to a point where a lot of them didn’t know what to do with me. “Okay, we’re not going to sleep with her. We’re not going to go out with her. What are we going to do ? » And my response was: ” Nothing ! Just chat with me! Have a falafel with me, you know? » So I tried to make a lot of friends and it didn’t really work because it was very unusual for me. Fame is very confusing for some people. There are so many different scenarios (to be able to) flourish as a person who is in the spotlight. Someone who is, in a way, isolated because of that.
“I could start breathing again. »
On a new song, “Nemesis,” you sing about psychedelic drugs.
Yes, I have experienced many “portals” to find God. Some of them are “temporary” but still open a window. I am a fairly curious girl, looking for experiments. I have many friends who have used these things to bury their ego. Except that in my case, it’s more complicated. I’m a bit of an anxious bird. There is so much information (in my head) all the time, that I feel like I’m selfish, even when I’m not on medication. I absolutely don’t need anything to help me venture out there.
You were supposed to spend this summer on tour with Liz Phair, whose career is becoming more and more similar to yours. Turning it around, have you ever dreamed of having a career like Liz Phair?
I never really thought about it, because it would require me not to be me. Maybe in a parallel universe, I have a lot to discover. But it was too late at 22 – I said to myself: “You can’t put this off until tomorrow. » Then, after a while, it calmed down. I was so ignorant of the trajectory that notoriety was taking that I said to myself: “Oh my God, does it stay like this forever? I want to get out! » But of course, that changes. That’s what’s cool about being a musician. We are not at the center of the universe all the time. I could start breathing again.
Your new album is the ultimate reminder of the power of your voice. That thing that only Alanis Morissette has. How did it appear?
She was always there! And I hear it in my son. He sings with me, the tone is exactly the same – and he has all the range of Mariah. I think it’s always been there. What I never wanted to do was do all the vocals for free to impress people. The number one priority was to tell a story. I’m knocking on wood when I say this, but I always imagined that as I got older, my vocal range would shrink. But it’s the opposite, in a way! In fact, my register is expanding. For me, the bottom is as much fun as the top. For example, how low can I go? It’s almost as if those vocal cords are a paintbrush. Sometimes they’re velvety, sometimes they’re really cute and vulnerable.
“I wasn’t at all ready to sing about my life when I was 15. »
All your dance-pop music recorded before Jagged Little Pill is now easily accessible online. That wasn’t the case years ago… If you listen now to your single “Too Hot”, released in 1991, what do you think?
I have always been attracted to different genres. I just finished the music video for (new single) “Smiling”, which has a lot of dance parts. Since I was six years old, I have considered myself a writer and a dancer. At the time, I wanted at all costs to link dance and rock. However, I collaborated with people who had a very, very clear sense of “No, you’re either this or that.”. There was no in-between. This is something I have heard so many times throughout my life. But at 16 or 17, I met people who had a different mentality. So I relaxed even more with art. To be honest, I wasn’t at all ready to sing about my life when I was 15. Too scary!
You are currently writing a book. It seems like you have a lot to tell, people to mention. How’s it going ?
Well, I wrote 1300 pages, naming a lot of names. But I’m not going to cite them (in the final product). I mean, maybe I will if I get a few permissions here and there, but again, not like in “You Oughta Know,” I’m not writing to exact revenge. The irony for me is that I no longer care about this story. I hired people to help me take care of it. My intention is not to just make a story that ruins the lives of 25 people in one page.
To listen/download the reissue of Jagged Little Pillit’s over there !
To listen Such Pretty Forks in the Roadit’s this way.
