Aug 4

Aug 4 Alanis Morissette - the storm before the calm

Alanis Morissette
the storm before the calm
Release Date: June 17th, 2022
Label: Epiphany

The name Alanis Morissette is synonymous with the angst of the mid-90s. While the grunge movement was making waves and a new era of pop-punk was beginning to explode with acts like Green Day and The Offspring defining an entirely new generation, Morrisette’s Jagged Little Pill was ripping its way through the speakers and earbuds of adolescents around the world, providing a soundtrack for the coming-of-age of millennials the world over. Morrisettestill continues to channel this fire and energy in her newer music, like 2020’s Such Pretty Forks In The Road, but in 2022, the Canadian songstress embarked on a new journey.

Enter the storm before the calm, an album comprised entirely of ambient music, written entirely over Zoom during the beginning of the pandemic, and created in collaboration with producer Dave Harrington (known for his work with electronic duo Darkside). This is not the kind of album you would expect from a performer like Morissette, but the storm before the calm is an intriguing entry in her discography. According to Apple Music, the album is “intended to serve as a companion for listeners during moments of reflection or meditation”. Clocking in at nearly two hours, this isn’t necessarily an album that you’re supposed to sit down and dissect from start to finish; Morrisette’s intention is clearly to have the album act as a companion to one’s life, those moments in which we all need to take a moment and just breathe.

With the exception of “mania – resting in the fire”, the album really does embrace a sense of calm (ironically, it’s hosted on the Calm meditation app in addition to the usual music streamers). There are no lyrics, no “You Oughta Know” moments that encourage arena-filled sing-alongs. This album was created during an unprecedented time in human history, and it’s clear that Morissette was trying to take pause and make something different, a selection of music that would help people regain their inner peace in moments of great pain, in moments of much needed reflection, or whenever they simply need to take a short pause on life.

This wasn’t a release that I ever would have expected from Morissette, let alone any contemporary recording artist, but it’s a distinctive entry in her lengthy discography. I give her credit for expanding her creative horizons. The tracks on the storm before the calm obviously won’t be included in any upcoming live performances, but its existence in the recorded form will always serve as a reminder that it’s okay to take a breather every once in a while.