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Concert Review

Alanis Morrissette -- Philadelphia Spectrum August 23, 1996

You know, before I went to this concert I reserved my reaction towards Ms. Morrissette. I waited a year before I began to like Hootie and the Blowfish. While others were jumping off the Hootie-train, I was jumping on screaming Hootie!!! in the WEXP studios. So, when Alanis started to get big, I wanted to give her that same chance. First, I began to like her for the sexuality that she’d bring. “Would she go down on you in a theater?” Well, no, but you sure as hell can! Than I noticed that she was pretty hot.

Slowly, but surely, she was getting into my soft spot.

Now, the constant radio time that she receives bothered me a bit, but I It was okay considering that they would play at least six different songs, not just the same fucKING BEATLES Song... oh, excuse me, ahem... the same FUCKING OASIS SONG!!!

Ooh, I’m sorry. Let’s get to the review. Well, first it took us almost as long to get to the show as it did for you to get to this paragraph. Anyway, we made it through the Yoga-book-selling-Moonies, the scalpers & the rip-off T-shirt sellers, made it across Broad Street alive despite the concert and Philadelphia Eagles vs. Pittsburgh Steelers traffic. And we also made it through Radiohead, who were allright, a little mellow... (By the by, they didn’t play Creep. Go figure?)

Alanis opened up with “What I really want,” which is my favorite song of hers, and she brought the house down. The 75% female crowd were going crazy. It was like the positive and negative ions in a thunderstorm... male and female hormonal-ions were clashing together creating this dripping wet electricity. It was so bad that this lesbian in front of us showed our entire section her breasts. (C+ -- completely tan, small and you couldn’t tell where the stomach began and breast began, but then again she was a lesbian and they were breasts!) Oh, PC-break, as in politically correct, I don’t know for sure that she was a lesbian, but her date/companion looked like she played softball, if you know what I mean? Hey, don’t get me wrong... Lesbians are good... Naked lesbians... much better.

Alanis mixed up her set with the hard songs, mellow songs, and the in-between stuff. For you “rockers” out there who don’t trust Pop stars musical integrity, let me just say the she just plain rocks! She played her electric guitar during “You Learn” and rocked like she was Neil Young. She harmonica-ized like she was ah, I guess, Neil Young... and she played drums like she was Neil....no not Neil Young... like she was Animal from the Muppets!!

When you go to see a show with an artist that has only one album, and that album has been out for almost two years, than you hope that the artist will throw in a couple of new songs with a couple of covers. No covers, but Alanis did treat us with three new songs, spread out throughout the show... including one in her encore! Pretty brave.

When you’re a solo artist with a big time following and you’re playing in arenas which are home to the biggest of the big bands... you better be a great show person. Once again, Alanis doesn’t disappoint. She looks like she’s having a good time, full of energy and vampiness and humor. In fact, if she’s the voice of my generation, than what the hell is everybody else so pissed off for. She’s having a good time! She’s so full of energy that she reminds me of Mike Myers’ hyper-hypo (hyper-active and hypo-glycemic) character from Saturday Night Live without the hockey-helmet, of course.

Basically, folks, Alanis just plain kicks ass. And I’m going to have to buy the CD now to find out what the names of some of these songs are. (Than you can get a set-list, sorry!)

out of 5.