The main reason nobody remembers Alanis Morissette’s last few albums is because she was in a good mood when she made them. Maturity, perspective, romantic fulfillment—feh! Who wants that crap from the back-shredding banshee who once terrorized our nation’s radios, hollering, “You Oughta Know”? But now that ex-fiancé Ryan Reynolds is dipping his hand in Scarlett Johansson’s pocket, Morissette sounds like a mess again. “I declare a moratorium on things relationship,” she announces, and producer Guy Sigsworth (Seal, Björk, Madonna) adds a touch of Eurodisco to her infatuation-junkie rambles. Morissette vents with some of her old flair: “In Praise of the Vulnerable Man” has the squirm power that’s her greatest strength, as Sigsworth’s synth beats help her lift the melody out of the emotional doldrums. “I’ve never been this accountable-less and within/I’ve never known focuslessness on any form”—now that’s our Alanis.

Download “Torch,” “Moratorium”