Oh, Canada: The Music of the 90s, There’s Nothing Ironic About It

Ok- maybe the 90s were a time of significant change and uncertainty in Canada, with issues like the Quebec sovereignty movement, economic challenges, and shifting cultural identities. These tensions found their way into the music, with artists using their platform to explore and express these anxieties. The result was music that often felt weighty, with a sense of existential dread or introspection, contributing to the perception of it as melancholic noise. In short, it was mostly a steaming pile. No need to agree here, it's just the hill I'm choosing to die on.

The grunge movement, which originated in the Pacific Northwest, particularly Seattle, heavily influenced the 1990s. Heavy, distorted guitars, raw vocal delivery, and themes of alienation and despair characterized this genre. Canadian bands like The Tea Party, Our Lady Peace, and Moist. Loud, melancholic — kids "Superman's Dead." A dark statement on how much television kids watch. Grand.

The Tragically Hip became icons, to some, of Canadian music in the 90s, and their music often exploring themes of Canadian identity, history, and geography. While not as sonically heavy as grunge, their music still had a melancholic quality, catching a theme here yet?

Many Canadian bands of the 90s, such as Alanis Morissette (we will revisit her here shortly) and Matthew Good Band, delved into personal and emotional territory. Morissette's "Jagged Little Pill" became a defining album of the decade, to many. How? I never understood it. With songs that were confrontational, and steeped in emotional turmoil. Her vocal delivery was often intense, almost poking into that gag reflex, contributing to the in-you-face fact of 90's Canadian music being both having the power to bring about a horrible menstrual period and giving both yourself and those around you the morbs.

The Matthew Good Band was known for its themes of depression, disillusionment, and existential angst. I feel cramps coming on just typing up this post... Maybe I'm just being 'Insensitive'. Shudders... I just never understood the attraction.

Can we just skip Sarah McLachlan? Sad songs, sad commercials featuring sad pets. That cause, albeit important, I need my heating pad ASAP.

"Jagged Little Pill," Alanis Morissette. I told you I'd come back to her... "Jagged Little Pill" was an enormous commercial success, selling millions of copies worldwide. This level of success sometimes led to overexposure, with her songs being played constantly on radio and MTV. For some listeners, this constant presence became overwhelming, leading to backlash.

Some critics and fans of the alternative and grunge scenes, which were known for their anti-commercialism, viewed Morissette's sudden rise to mainstream fame as a form of "selling out." Her music was often seen as being packaged for mass appeal, which went against the underground ethos of the alternative music scene.

Songs were thematically repetitive, focusing heavily on anger, betrayal, and emotional pain. Which brought me to a quick opinion that her songs are/were both one-dimensional and self-indulgent. In particular, the song 'Ironic'. That song has been a topic of debate because, despite its title, many of the situations described in the lyrics aren't actually examples of irony. Irony typically involves a contrast between expectation and reality, where something happens that is the opposite of what one would expect. For those that didn't know.

I clearly remember being in school. This word got thrown round because of the song. The word wasn't properly utilized, then I'm not even sure it is now. "We came to school on today wearing the same crappy- fluorescent pink- bicycle shorts! How ironic!” — No, just a coincidence, Natasha.

Lemme break down the lyrics of "Isn't It Ironic" by Alanis Morissette to understand why many of the situations she describes aren't actually ironic.

Verse 1:

1. "An old man turned ninety-eight / He won the lottery and died the next day."

   • Not ironic: This is a case of bad luck or tragic timing. There’s no real expectation that winning the lottery should prevent death or prolong life. It’s just an unfortunate coincidence.

2. "It's a black fly in your Chardonnay."

   • Not ironic: This is simply an annoying or unpleasant occurrence. There’s no inherent expectation that Chardonnay is fly-free, so this is just an example of something unpleasant happening.

3. "It's a death row pardon two minutes too late."

   • Not ironic: This is another instance of bad timing. The expectation is that the pardon should have arrived in time, but it didn't. While tragic, it's not ironic because the outcome (the person still dies) is consistent with the situation (the pardon arriving late).

Chorus:

"Isn't it ironic? Don't you think?"

• Not ironic: The chorus asks if these situations are ironic, but they are more examples of unfortunate events or bad luck rather than irony.

Verse 2:

1. "It's like rain on your wedding day."

   • Not ironic: This is a classic example cited by critics. While rain on a wedding day might be disappointing, it's not ironic. It’s just bad weather. There’s no inherent expectation that weddings should have perfect weather, so there’s no contradiction.

2. "It's a free ride when you've already paid."

   • Not ironic: This is an example of a missed opportunity rather than irony. The expectation might be to use the free ride, but paying and then finding out it was free doesn’t create a contradiction—it's just unfortunate timing.

3. "It's the good advice that you just didn't take."

   • Not ironic: This is more about regret or poor decision-making. There’s no expectation that one must always take good advice, so there’s no ironic twist here, just a consequence of not heeding advice.

   • Bridge:

   1. "Mr. Play It Safe was afraid to fly / He packed his suitcase and kissed his kids goodbye."

      • Not ironic: This sets up a scenario where someone cautious and fearful of flying finally decides to take a flight. The expectation is that he might overcome his fear safely.

   2. "He waited his whole damn life to take that flight / And as the plane crashed down, he thought, 'Well, isn't this nice?'"

      • Not ironic: This is tragic and perhaps darkly humorous, but it's not ironic in the traditional sense. The plane crash is an unfortunate event, but it doesn’t represent an unexpected twist or contradiction in expectation. It’s more about bad luck striking when someone finally takes a risk.

   • Chorus:

   "Isn't it ironic? Don't you think?"

   • Still not ironic: The chorus repeats the idea that these situations are ironic, but they remain examples of bad luck, unfortunate timing, or coincidence rather than true irony.

   • Verse 3:

   1. "A traffic jam when you're already late."

      • Not ironic: This is frustrating but not ironic. Traffic jams are common, especially when one is in a hurry, so there’s no contradiction or unexpected twist here.

   2. "A no-smoking sign on your cigarette break."

      • Not ironic: This is simply an inconvenience. While it’s annoying to encounter a no-smoking sign when you want to smoke, it’s not ironic because there’s no inherent expectation that you should be able to smoke everywhere during your break.

   3. "It's like ten thousand spoons when all you need is a knife."

      • Not ironic: This is more absurd than ironic. Having an abundance of something that isn't useful when you need something specific is frustrating, but it doesn’t involve a twist of expectation or a reversal of what’s anticipated.

   4. "It's meeting the man of my dreams / And then meeting his beautiful wife."

      • Not ironic: This is more about disappointment or bad luck in love. There’s no irony because meeting someone who is already in a relationship isn’t an unexpected twist—it’s just an unfortunate turn of events.

   • Chorus & Outro:

   "Isn't it ironic? Don't you think? / A little too ironic, and yeah, I really do think."

   • Not ironic: The repeated refrain emphasizes the song’s theme, but as analyzed, the situations described are more about misfortune, coincidence, and frustration rather than actual irony.

The song "Isn't It Ironic" uses the word "ironic" to describe a series of unfortunate or frustrating situations, but most of them are not ironic in the true sense. Irony involves an incongruity between what is expected and what actually happens, usually with a twist that subverts expectations. In most of the examples given in the song, there is no such twist—just bad luck or inconvenient circumstances. The song’s title and lyrics have sparked discussions and criticisms for this reason.

There are things about the 90s, as a Canadian child, I will always hold near and dear to my heart: Moonmist ice cream, Log Driver's Waltz, The Raccoons. But maybe the music should all be dumped into that orange barfbowl — a barftastic cultural artifact of the 90s.