Alanis Morissette, 'Hand In My Pocket' (Sessions)

AOL: Your new album, 'Flavors of Entanglement' is rather sonically different from your previous work. Was that a conscious decision?

AM: Nothing's very conscious when I'm writing it. I definitely wanted to surprise myself and stretch myself in a sonic landscape kind of sense. That's why I worked with Guy Sigsworth on this one. His sensibility is a little different than mine.

AOL: At what point did you know that it was time to start writing again?

AM: Typically, I'll start writing after two journals are full, but this time journals were full to the point where six of them were teaming. So, apparently whenever I want. I think there's a time my whole body says it's time to go, and then I listen.

AOL: You recently went through a very public breakup. Do you feel vulnerable writing such personal lyrics, knowing the listeners will most likely read into the words?

AM: I never admit who the songs are about. I've never done so since as far back as I can remember. I don't write songs for the sake of outing someone or pointing a finger in that way. I'm writing it to get it out of my system. Once it is out of my system and it's on tape, it's really irrelevant who it's about. I got it out of my body and I sing it every night when I'm on tour, so it serves its purpose in that sense. That negates the necessity to say who the song's about.

AOL: Another woman before you, Carly Simon, managed to keep the identity behind 'You're So Vain' secret all this time. Have you ever met Carly or ever talked about this with her?

AM: I think I slept with her in '78. No [laughs]. I've never met Carly Simon, although I love her. And 'You're So Vain' -- people can guess and people are right sometimes, and not accurate the other times.