Rilo Kiley : Releases >>
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Under the Black Light >>
Since her band's last record (2004's More Adventurous), Rilo Kiley frontwoman Jenny Lewis has taken her one-time child-actress, pop-star status up a level, as her charismatic solo effort, Rabbit Fur Coat, was one of the top recordings of 2006. But those who feared she'd abandon her long-time mates to do it alone will be instantly comforted by a collection of songs so zestful and extravagantly produced that no less than four emerge tailor-made for pop radio. After the opener "Silver Lining" feeds off George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" riff and some cajoling handclaps, Lewis reels in the glee with "Close Call," where the lavishness of the melodies outweighs the foreboding lyrics. The bouncy "Breaking Up," with the sun-splashed chorus "feels good to be free," is so absolutely California-beach perfect, it's ripe for a million-selling soda commercial, and then Lewis saves her vocal best for a trifecta near the end: Dusty Springfield soul ("15"), dancefloor power pop ("Smoke Detector"), and meltaway folk ("The Angels Hung Around"). Did it take their angel leaving the nest for a spell for Rilo Kiley to make their definitive record? The argument is futile, but the music is sublime. --Scott Holter
More Adventurous >>
Are they alternative-country rockers or alternative rock crooners? That was the conundrum following Rilo Kiley's 2002 release, The Execution of Things, and with More Adventurous, the band's first record with major label support, we have our answer. Jolted by the divinely pure vocals of Jenny Lewis and Blake Sennett's howling guitar on prospective indie anthems like "Portions for Foxes," the Los Angeles foursome has two fists through the earth in their quest to depart the underground. It's obvious from the opening smack-talk sing-a-long "It's a Hit" that Lewis is the centerpiece of this 11-song pop consignment (leaving the capable Sennett to sing only the acoustic low-fi "Ripchord"), and the unabashed charisma that is her trademark infiltrates throughout—from rockers ("Love and War") to ballads ("Absence of God") to pop ("Accidntel Deth") to Dusty Springfield soul ("I Never"). And while the production is polished to radio-friendly, it fails to dull the charming accessibility of a band that wears progression as a badge. --Scott Holter
Execution Of All Things >>
Portions for Foxes >>
It's a Hit >>
Breakin' Up >>
The Execution of All Things >>
Money Maker >>
Portions for Foxes >>
More Adventurous >>
