Oh, Jenny!

Cute? You bet she is. Sexy? Hmmm, I would say passionate, rather than sexy. Add ‘gifted’ to her profile, and here she is: the fabulous Jenny Lewis.

Sweet Jenny (Lou should rewrite ‘Sweet Jane’ as ‘Sweet Jenny’, especially for her) is the new star of our radio show, thanks to the magic of her latest achievement, ‘Rabbit Fur Coat’, credited to Jenny Lewis with The Watson Twins. Isn’t this a brilliant record! Yes, The Watsons spread their lovely harmonies all over the place. OK, the special appearance of Mr. Conor Oberst himself, whose label puts the album out, is a strategic advantage. But, what makes the difference is the charming Miss Lewis. She has written the songs (eleven originals, plus a Traveling Wilburys cover), and she performs them in a physical way (and in her one-of-a-kind dresses -this girl has made dresses trendy again!), as if she is singing her tales to us.

Search for her video-clips, and watch this former child starlet and TV/movie actress’s wet, about-to-cry eyes. Eyes of genuine sadness. The kind of eyes and the kind of songs that made our radio program suffer from ...Jenny-ism.

Our Jenny’s first step outside the camp of Rilo Kiley is a ‘while soul’ whisper. Moody Americana, bluegrass harmonies, absolute seduction. Sensitive. Fragile. As sensitive and fragile, as precious beauty always is. Imagine Mazzy Star gone country, and you get the idea.

Need I say more? Well, let me say one last (but not least) thing: Jenny has created one of the funnest to listen to albums of 2006. Does she know that?

John Simandiras

Linkography: http://www.jennylewis.com, http://www.myspace.com/lewiswithwatsons, http://team-love.com/bands/jenny, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jenny_Lewis, http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:13r9281w056a, http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:efug6j3271u0.

‘Rabbit Fur Coat’ is out now on Rough Trade (rtradcd291) in Europe. In Greece, Rough Trade is distributed by our good friends @Hitch-Hyke Music (210 9233472).