Avril promises to cheer up a little

Having seen her profile dip when she tried a "grown-up" (i.e. mainstream emo) album, Avril Lavigne has decided to not make that mistake again:

"I was just so over writing such serious songs," Lavigne told Billboard. "Even though they really weren't that serious, I went through a little dark phase when I was 18 and wrote Under My Skin. But I grew out of that. Lyrically, I didn't know where I was going to go on this record. I totally did not even think about it. I had no theme. I was thinking more about the music and the vibe.

"My favourite stuff to play live has always been Sk8er Boi and He Wasn't, the faster songs. When I was on tour, I realized I need to write more of this kind of stuff. Those songs come alive onstage, and I feel like that's the most me."

Yes... you're at your most alive when you're selling records, Avril.