Such Pretty Forks in the Road found
Alanis Morissette sweetly drifting toward the shimmering vistas of new age, so it's not quite a surprise that she's followed the album with an explicit exercise in meditation music; that's where her heart already lay. Spirituality and healing have been at the core of
Morissette's music since
Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie -- it's also arguable that the key to
Jagged Little Pill is that it chronicles a struggle for emotional growth -- so having
Morissette create a lengthy guided meditation feels natural. Working with producer
Dave Harrington, best known as half of the electronic music duo
Darkside,
Morissette does craft
The Storm Before the Calm as a voyage, one that moves slowly through shifting atmospheres but one that doesn't deny moments of distress, either: toward the end of the record, "Mania -- Resting in the Fire" provides a cacophonic catharsis. Most of the album isn't nearly as forceful. It's gentle and insistent, music that encourages relaxation and focus, music designed to lighten stress, and it's quite successful at that. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
![Come Away With Me [20th Anniversary] [Super Deluxe 3 CD]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0602445077724_p0_v1_s90x140.jpg "Come Away With Me [20th Anniversary] [Super Deluxe 3 CD]")
