Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie

1	Front Row 4:13
2	Baba 4:29
3	Thank U 4:18
4	Are You Still Mad 4:04
5	Sympathetic Character 5:13
6	That I Would Be Good 4:16
7	The Couch 5:24
8	Can't Not 4:35
9	UR 3:31
10	I Was Hoping 3:51
11	One 4:40
12	Would Not Come 4:05
13	Unsent 4:10
14	So Pure 2:50
15	Joining You 4:24
16	Heart Of The House 3:46
17	Your Congratulations 3:54

Barnes & Noble

By combining the raw anger of Hole and the preppy noise of Liz Phair, Alanis Morissette created one of the hallmark albums of the '90s with her American debut, 1995's JAGGED LITTLE PILL. Although some caricatured the album as a petulant rant, the album clearly struck a nerve -- and resulted in gargantuan record sales (15 million to date). For her follow-up, the awkwardly titled SUPPOSED FORMER INFATUATION JUNKIE, Morissette turns inward. "Would Not Come" chronicles her struggle for self-acceptance, "Thank U" speaks of the difficulty of unloading emotional baggage, and "One" starts with the lines: "I am the biggest hypocrite/I've been undeniably jealous/I have been loud and pretentious." That may be true of the character in the song, but not of the woman behind it. Her revelations are neither gratuitous nor vain, and the music behind them is lush and richly textured but never lacking in muscle. With this album, Morissette establishes herself as an important, maturing artist. Martin Johnson

All Music Guide

While it's not a repudiation of her blockbuster, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie is a clear step forward, teeming with ambition and filled with new musical ideas and different sonic textures. Alanis Morissette's voice still sears, but she has more control over her singing, rarely reaching the piercing heights that occasionally made Jagged Little Pill jarring. Also, she has clearly spent some time crafting her lyrics; not only do they never sound like straight diary entries, she no longer is trying to fit too many syllables into a phrase. These two differences are subtle -- the brooding, Eastern-styled music that dominates Supposed is not. There are numerous extensions of the vague hip-hop and pop fusions that made "Hand in Pocket" and "All I Really Want" huge hits ("Front Row," "UR," "Thank U," "So Pure"), but much of the album is devoted to moody ballads and mid-tempo pop, where the textured production functions as a backdrop for Morissette's cryptically introspective lyrics. Far from being alienating, this approach works surprisingly well -- not only do the pop tunes sound catchier, but the ballads, with their winding melodies and dark colors, sound strong and brave. If anything, the record is more coherent album than its predecessor, and even if it isn't as accessible or as compulsively listenable, it's a richer record. That said, it won't win any new fans -- for all of her success, Morissette is a weird acquired taste, due to her idiosyncratic vocals and doggedly convoluted confessionals -- but it certainly confirms that she doesn't quite sound like anyone else, either. Stephen Thomas Erlewine