Alanis Morissette is not the embodiment of pure evil. She may be the Pat Benatar of the '90s, a female star with a very marketable combination of spirit and sex appeal (and an alterna-come-lately to the big business of Modern Rock), but she's also one of the most interesting commercial events in popular music since Nirvana came down the pike a few years ago. Sheryl Crow put an understated spin on it when she wished Morissette well at a pre-Grammy party, saying, "It's an interesting sign that a song with a woman talking about blowjobs is up for Best Song."

Of course, what's really interesting about Morissette is that a former Canadian dance-single gal could so easily be repackaged as an alternarock contender and then triumph on a level that PJ Harvey, Liz Phair, and even Courtney Love haven't hit yet. Morissette, along with Bush, is a sign that alternative rock hasn't only ceased to be alternative in everything but name -- but has become almost as easy to commercialize as, well, blowjobs would be if that kind of thing were legal. There's nothing sinister about it. And let's face it, though there are strong female singer/songwriters out there who are more sophisticated, provocative, and compelling, none of them has reached as many people as Morissette has with her brash song of empowerment.

-- Matt Ashare