Acid Tongue

More lively and consistent than 2006's "Rabbit Fur Coat," Lewis's second solo disc builds like a whisky buzz. [Nov 2008, p.155]

Simple piano/bass head-bob 'Sing a Song' closes, reaffirming that Jenny Lewis' tongue lashings can't be matched for cheap thrills.

Lively and loose, cut with collaborators including her talented Scottish boyfriend Johnathan Rice, spooky folkie M. Ward and actress-singer Zooey Deschanel, the 11 songs (many of which she has performed live for years) encompass Southern-gothic folk, Appalachian blues stomps and 'The Next Messiah,' an eight-minute, Who-style rock mini-opera.

What it has in common with its superb predecessors is Lewis's invaluable understanding of what works for her.

To sustain her muse beyond short-term thrill-seeking, a little more focus, restraint and better pacing is certainly required. That said, Acid Tongue is still-peppered with acts of greatness, which will no doubt grow further in stature through successive spins.

The scrappy indie bite of Lewis’ early work may be gone and you won’t find much in the way of Marshall’s emotional bloodletting. But even if it’s likely to cost Lewis the affections of online tastemakers, she looks set to charm an increasingly large audience for years to come.

Various guests--including Elvis Costello, M. Ward, and the singer’s own sister and father--are fun, but Lewis clearly remains the star, rising.

There’s quite a supporting cast on Jenny Lewis’s second LP. Elvis Costello makes an appearance, Zooey Deschanel, Jonathan Rice and M Ward all pop by.

Acid Tongue has more hits than misses. However, Lewis doesn't realize her full potential on this LP.

This second album easily stands on its own merits. [Oct 2008, p.102]

Only a talent as major as Lewis could half bring it off.

It's not the most instantly winning of albums, but its rewards become evident after repeated listens, its subtleties revealing themselves like an unfolding paper fan.

Acid Tongue is fuller and has more of a ragged, live-band feel than any of Lewis’ previous work.

The problem then is one of staying power--Lewis does such a good job of nailing choice sounds and styles from pop's past that you can't help getting reeled in right away; only upon later reflection do you realize that much of her success lies in evoking something else great rather than achieving a greatness more uniquely her own.

Particularly by front-loading the album with the bulk of its wayward experiments, the overall momentum of Acid Tongue is severely stalled by the time the listener approaches the stronger material.

The album is boastful, vulnerable and witty, usually within the course of a single song. It may be a bad man’s world, but a bad girl’s record makes it that much more tolerable.

Impressively, she pulls off both sympathy and empathy. [Oct 2008, p.138]

There's plenty of storminess on her excellent second solo album, whose songs mix muscular guitar rock ('The Next Messiah') with soul balladeering ('Sing a Song for Them') and chamber pop ('Black Sand').

Too much of Acid Tongue ignores what makes Lewis a compelling artist in favor of empty, not entirely successful style hopping.

Acid Tongue is glossed up at the expense of Lewis' charming flaws.

Unfortunately for those still hoping for an old-school Rilo Kiley redux, Lewis' new Acid Tongue is the sonic midpoint of those two releases, matching "Blacklight's" freewheeling, schizophrenic vibe with "Fur Coat's" alt-country foundations. For those ready to move with Lewis down those paths, however, the new one is a confident amalgam of tracks that sparkle, stew, and storm.

Ms. Lewis, also the frontwoman for Rilo Kiley, is unwrapped here, emboldened in her songwriting and more flexible in her voice.

Acid Tongue is imperfect, but nevertheless slightly more than halfway to astounding.

Acid Tongue establishes Jenny Lewis as an idiosyncratic talent in her own right. [Fall 2008, p.76]