Hello Lisa
Essentially a repackaging of Lisa Loeb's criminally overlookedCake and Pierelease,Hello Lisafinds the decaf diva unleashing her cutesy impulses in the extreme, embracing theHello Kittyaesthetic wholesale while adding photos of (presumably) her own kitties to up the aw-shucks factor. Still, the girl can write a song and turn a phrase. Take "Underdog," where she deadpans, "I like things that are so good/ You are so, so good." Or this, from the set's most powerful track, "Everyday"--"Love turns its back just to stand in my way," delivered with Loeb's characteristically powerful understatement. Unlikely conspiratorsDweezil ZappaandRandy Scruggsprovide counterpoint to Loeb's fizzy folk-pop, butHello Lisais her show, and it's all the better for it.--Kim Hughes