Jenny Lewis

Acid Tongue

[4.5/5]

Jenny Lewis broke into show biz as a child TV actor before growing up into an indie-rock pinup girl as co-singer of Rilo Kiley. Her third career as a part-time alt-country bandleader is her best shot at syndication, though. More lively and consistent than 2006’s Rabbit Fur Coat, Lewis’s second solo disc builds like a whiskey buzz. It’s not staggeringly original, but Acid Tongue holds its own against soulful Southern ladies of the past and present. Paying homage to the Ozark Mountain Devils and Dusty Springfield, sensual slow jams “Black Sand” and “Bad Man’s World” summon a summer-night ambiance of cooing siren vocals, lulling beats, chopping strings and piano plunks. The showstopper of the set, however, is “Fernando,” a clap-along, sing-along foot-stomper that soars with spiritual-style harmonies about the county’s most valuable sinner. (WARNER BROS.) D.X. Ferris