Most writers don't start off an interview by gushing over the artist with whom they're about to speak. I have spent time with and talked to my fair share of celebrities -- I like to think I can just act normal around pretty much anyone -- so in planning what to say to Annie Lennox, I certainly didn't expect that I would gush. Fearing it was a possibility though, I told myself (I might have even said outloud), "don't gush." But when Annie Lennox got on the phone and said my name, what was a gay guy to do? I gushed. Only for a second, but it was a gush nonetheless. She took it in stride, we even had a moment of, what, gay flirting(?), and then proceeded to talk about her new CD being released tomorrow, 'Songs of Mass Destruction.'

There are few artists working today who have what Annie Lennox has, which includes, namely: unparalleled musical talent, staggering commercial success, sustainable creative relevance, political conviction and a gravitas of spirit that envelopes whatever she does and wherever she goes. The Scottish-born artist who burned up the 80s as one-half of the Eurythmics sets a standard all her own, eschewing the trappings of diva for a journey in which she sets out to examine -- and then share with us -- the deepest, darkest places inside herself.

It's been four long years sincewe last heard from the Grammy- and Oscar-winning singer/songwriter who has sold 78 million albums. Lennox's fourth solo album is finally here, and it is every bit the gem that we'd hoped for. Combining political commentary on the war in Iraq, AIDS in Africa and women's issues, Lennox uses her soapbox to call a spade a spade -- or, in this case, a "war" an "invasion." If you haven't seen the music video for 'Dark Road,' see it. Fans of her sumptuous, almost otherworldly orchestration will feel like they're getting to visit an old friend with this album, a friend who is at once familiar and new. There is also a good variation between soulful ballads and upbeat rhythms.

Twenty-three music icons join Lennox on the track 'Sing,' a tribute to the work of Nelson Mandela's human rights efforts with 46664 and Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) organizations. I should point out that with lyrics like "Sing my sister ... Sing! / Let your voice be heard!," 'Sing' is likely destined also to become a new lesbian anthem, soon to be seen alongside Lennox's classic 'Sisters Are Doing It for Themselves' on the iPods of Michigan Womyn's Music Festival lovers everywhere.

An Annie Lennox album wouldn't be complete without the lush and haunting cries over lovers who fail us, or at least test us. Pour yourself a stiff one, turn down the lights and get ready to have your heart torn out listening to 'Lost' and 'Fingernail Moon.' In fact, pour yourself two. You'll want to sit through the entire album of 'Songs for Mass Destruction' and experience her gift, which is that even as she plunges us into the depths of human suffering and broken hearts, Annie Lennox still manages to lift us up.

Now, before you get that drink, have a gander at our conversation in which we discuss her edge, her soul, her conviction and, oh yeah, our gay flirtation.

KENNETH HILL: I'm a huge fan and adore you in every way possible for somebody who's never met you.

ANNIE LENNOX: And who's also a gay man, I presume?

HILL: Exactly.

LENNOX: (laughs) So you don't adore me in that kind of way.

HILL: Well, if anybody could change me ...

LENNOX/HILL: [straight woman/gay guy giggle]

HILL: With the release of your new album, you've said "I feel closer to my own cutting edge than before." How so?

LENNOX: It's hard to quantify, but I think a part of the process might just be kind of coming of age. I've certainly been around the block a few times, you know. Something about being more flexible, more aware of who I am in the world. When I had my children, my life really changed, in all kinds of ways, particularly in a kind of psychological, emotional ... I put myself in a very different situation there with these children because, you know, all of the sudden you're not the first concern. Your children are really what counts. You must be very responsible for them, you kind of take a sort of second ... you're kind of there for them, you're there to support them. My oldest daughter is sixteen now, and it's been a very wonderful, very challenging at times, very phenomenal journey. Looking back, it's hard to actually quantify it, but, there's this change in attitude. I know more who I think I am in terms of what I represent, what I stand for. Who knows what anyone is, who anyone is, and in a sense, identity [inaudible], is it some kind of mask, is it some kind of thing that we adapt to, I mean, where is truth? You can go on asking this question ad infinitum, but essentially it's more about a quality of how I feel, and when it comes to performance, or when it comes to writing and statements, a statement of intent, I feel very much more clear in a way.

HILL: May I ask about the title of your new CD, 'Songs of Mass Destruction.' What meaning do you want to convey in co-opting such an infamous political phrase?

LENNOX: Yes, of course, of course. You know, that had a massive ramification for all of us in America and in the UK, because we were led, on the basis of a lie, into what in fact is a kind of invasion of another country, with absolutely devastating results. I do not see how this war, or whatever you want to call it, a liberation, apparently, of the Iraqi people, what was the purpose of this? And to what end? You are looking at a debt of trillions of dollars, a kind of drain on the economy, and the man who is running the country, who seems to feel that he is beyond reproach, that he is infinitely supported and seems to be seized by arrogance. He calls himself a man of God, and yet it's very odd the way this person behaves. I was just horrified how people get into power, one individual in this case – obviously he's not the only one running the show, his friends in power and his friends in corporate businesses are obviously pulling the strings along with the puppet – but it's just amazing what these people get away with, and they get voted in.

HILL: So you've created this album. Do you see it as a political statement?

LENNOX: Obviously I'm taking a swipe at it, because I feel our own prime minister at the time, Tony Blair, just led us down that road. It was incredible. He was voted in by a mass majority, people's expectations were something entirely different, and a few years down the line, here we are backing up America who was going into a country in the Middle East. And we're supposed to be going into a war with terrorism and I'm thinking to myself, you know don't solve terrorism by going into war with it. That sounds a little limited in terms of vision and creative response. There are other ways of solving terrorism. It's not talking about "solving" terrorism. The rhetoric at the time was "if you're not with us, you're against us." This was a very frightening moment. I remember being here in America, people were so afraid to speak their minds because they thought there would be some kind of like a McCarthy-ist witch hunt. In fact, anyone who did, particularly the group the Dixie Chicks, and Susan Sontag and her partner, you know, they were incredibly brave and all they were doing was just speaking their minds. My God were they lambasted for it. They were almost hung up, drawn and quartered.

HILL: I wanted to ask you about that because some quote-unquote liberal artists are targeted by less liberal people for taking a political stance. The Dixie Chicks were told to "shut up and sing." Barbra Streisand, for her words and actions, is routinely attacked by conservatives for her political activism. Have you ever felt pressured to hold back, or been concerned about potential backlash [to your work for expressing the things you believe in?]

LENNOX: I understand what you're saying. I think one has to be terribly careful how a message is put across. I remember Sinead O'Connor – everyone does – what is it you remember about Sinead O'Connor? The fact that she ripped up an image of the pope on stage, and the whole thing went against her. Sadly. And I have such respect for her as an artist, I think she's one of the most beautiful singers, one of the most gifted songwriters and an incredible shining light, and Sinead did that on an impulse. It virtually wrecked her. And I thought, what a travesty that there's this girl who did this thing – I can understand her kind of petulant need to take a step like that – and unfortunately it served her no purpose. You have to just be aware that whatever you do, you can't always guarantee the outcome. Your first... no, MY first thought is, OK, how can I be effective, how can I really be effective? If I do "X", is that going to work? You have to weight it up. You really do, because you don't want to come at it kamikaze by taking some step or making some statement. But at the same time, if that's going to happen, that's going to happen.

HILL: Back to the album title for a second ... Songs like 'Dark Road' and 'Sing' make political statements, but a lot of the tracks on the album are of a continuing theme of yours about the difficulties of love and relationships. In the 'Smithereens' track you talk about how you couldn't "bear to break it [a relationship] down to smithereens." Did you intend for the name of your album to implicate personal relationships too?

LENNOX: No, not at all. Absolutely not. My songs are non-specific, they're general, and although I've experienced all kinds of feelings, etc, etc., I think that there's a feeling for all of us, which is that wound, you know, that primal wound, that we've all come from, which is the separation from Mother or whatever it is. I think most of us are, subconsciously or otherwise, in some kind of wounded space. I recognize that I have had that wound all my life. You could see it expressed in the sense of unrequited love, perhaps it's a lack of love for oneself. A psychologist could have a field day with me, but I don't think ... I think that's the universal condition, you know, the human condition, in any case.

HILL: In ['Dark Road'] you talk about not being able to find "the joy within my soul." As someone who obviously feels things deeply and experiences a great amount of pain from what's going on in the world politically and in your own life experiences, is Annie Lennox able to find the joy within her soul?

LENNOX: From time to time, absolutely. You know, it's not a sustained thing, it doesn't always come in the moment when I expect it. It could come when I least expect it. But I'm not nihilistic. The songs are like snapshots of moments, so there can be a moment when I know that feeling, I absolutely know that feeling when I can't find the joy within my soul. And yet at other times I'm filled with joy, just you know, something like a beautiful flower or the sound of a little tyke, something so simple can make me feel happy. So, I don't look at happiness as a given. It can come if you're open to it.