Cogs can think.

I’m one of the early Alanis Morissette adopters. After having heard ‘You Oughta Know’ for the first time somewhere in 1995 on MTV, I ordered the Jagged Little Pill album (one of the best selling albums of all time; 30 million copies!) via one of those CD clubs my parents were enlisted to. As clear as a glass of Martini on the rocks, I remember the afternoon it arrived; I was at home during my lunch break from primary school (I was 10, I was a music addict from a very young age), and there it lay in our mailbox, together with some irrelevant albums my parents had bought. I ran to my parents’ Hi-Fi set.

My life would never be the same again. I kid you not. Even though it sounds cheesy now, I was hooked. For months to follow, I listened to nothing else but this album. I remember, a few years later; my brother had stolen it (as well as my bike) and lost the album somewhere in Schagen. I don’t think I have ever been that angry. There’s a reason I defend my album collection with violence. I will kill, if necessary, to defend it.

Anyway, when I was in high school, Alanis released her second international album (actually her fourth album, but anyway), Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie. It was almost a culture shock; so different it was from Jagged Little Pill. It was deeper, more complicated, and definitely much, much darker. It was harder to swallow, but once it had passed through your throat, it would suddenly start to make sense. Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie is definitely one of the best albums of the ’90s; personally, it is one of the best albums ever made. I can pop it into my CD player right now, and it still feels fresh and novel.

I have always remained a devout fan of Alanis, despite the fact she has never been able to reach the level of Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie again; which is not to say her later albums were not good– they were just less. Let me state that even though her later material did not grip me as much as her first two albums, they still rise above anything most others have ever been able to make (the new material on ‘Feast On Scraps‘, but the way, is an exception to the above. The eight new songs on that DVD are really good).

I never much cared for her Indiabackpacking attitude, but if I had to name three people in this world I would like to meet, she is definitely on it (Fiona Apple, Alanis Morissette, the Queen). She seems like a truly nice, kind, and caring person.

Shaking the hand of one of the greatest singer songwriters ever would be a heartfelt honour.