Under Rug Swept marks Alanis Morisette's impressive debut as producer. Say what you will about her contorted lyrics and grating syntax, but you can't fault her for making the words go down nice and easy with some awfully compelling musical textures. On the gorgeously acoustic "Flinch" Morisette bemoans her inability to shake the memory of an old flame, while "So Unsexy" is lit up with a hip hop beat and a killer chorus. "21 Things I Want in a Lover" features an exploding guitar riff that makes you almost forgive the shoehorning of such awkward lyrics as "are you funny?/ á la self-deprecating?". With various musical elements lighting up these 11 tracks, Under Rug is a finely crafted album that winds around themes of relationships and flawed choices.

This cd has it moments. I've got one word to say to Alanis "GET OVER IT" Alanis says in Precious Illusions " i want to stop playing the victim" Well why don't you Alanis???? I would like Alanis to write a song that reflects HER part she played in all these men that f*cked her over? What could you be doing differently in relationships Alanis??? Relationships are not one sided.

If your sick to death of hearing Alanis whine about men, then avoid this cd

One of her consistently best albums. "Hands Clean," to me, is clearly about her having a relationship with a much younger man and worrying over how the rest of the world will react to it. Anyways, fans of hers gotta have this.

This album is good, although not near as good as her last album and can't be compared to her first one. Alanis seems to be stepping down rungs of a ladder, getting worse with every album. I love a lot of tracks on the album but there are at least four filler ones which is bad since there is only eleven tracks on the album. Still this is much better than her newest album 'So Called Chaos', the best thing about that album is it's name...

I love this album. I think it is her best. I've never written a review before but was so surprised by the negativity of the reviews that have been posted. I feel like I'm growing up with Alanis. When she was an angry young woman, I was at that stage in my life. Now, she has gained a sense of herself ... it's refreshing. This album is about accepting who you are and being OK with that. It's about putting the pain of past relationships in perspective. It's about living your life and being in control of your own happiness (such as recognizing you have a choice as to who you let effect your life and for how long. You have the choice what relationships you enter and when you leave). I think the lyrics are beautiful and very insightful for a woman her age. The album is empowering, not because it puts men in there place liked Jagged Little Pill but because it is more about finding your place as a woman. If you like thought provoking music and are in a different place in your life than you were when enjoying Alanis' early men bashing days, you should like this CD.