Alanis Morissette and her band streamed live online for a short but sweet set to commemorate 25 years since the release of her album Jagged Little Pill.
The sound and video quality of this stream were top notch! The video stream went uninterrupted and was sharp and clear. It was indeed live, but really had a studio quality sound. The show was sweet but short, as Morissette and her band played only five songs back to back.
Morissette’s voice is iconic and unique as always. She can still belt out those high notes and carry them through till the end with ease, as she pulls away from her mic because she knows the power in her voice.
Despite the short set, the performance was smooth and easy going. I particularly liked when Morissette played her harmonica as it reminded me that she does indeed play harmonica! It isn’t as easy as one may believe to play, and she played it flawlessly.
The stream felt more like, we, the audience, were viewing a studio recording session from behind a one way mirror. There was no interaction and or feedback in the comments from the organizers, which did not follow the current trend in online live streaming, but, none the less, it felt like having Alanis all to ourselves!
Most of the tunes were hits off Jagged Little Pill, with the exception of her latest release, Reasons I drink. One of the highlights for me was when she changed the lyrics to the verse in the song Ironic from “beautiful wife” to “beautiful husband”. This being her only social comment.
When she sang You Outa Know there was censorship as they cut out the line “fuck her,” which was an unfortunate downfall of this particular live stream. Censorship isn’t a “ thing” during live concerts. I guess we “outa know” what to expect in a mainstream-stream *ahem…
In an interview following the show, host Tara Slone asked Morissette about how she is coping during the pandemic, and she expressed that as an artist, she harnesses certain emotions such as anger, sadness and fear, and she discussed how they come out in her performances. She also noted the importance of these emotions in how they give her “permission to be messy and human.“
Slone asked “what would you say to young Alanis?” Morissette answered,“ I would tell her she isn’t alone.” She further explained how she felt back when she reached a peak in her fame and how she retreated rather than embraced it. Today she reacts and feels much differently and she attributes this as growth. One question I would have asked Alanis, is “have you read all those books we see behind you?” I wouldn’t doubt that the answer would have been “ YES”!
Set list:
Head Over Feet
Reasons I drink
Ironic
You Outa know
Thank you
Follow Alanis Morrisette here: https://alanis.com/
Although this particular live stream is no longer available, you can watch a full 90 minute special about the Jagged Little Pill, Live tour on YouTube.
