Ben Kweller
On his first eponymous effort, Ben Kweller sounds wise beyond his years--and younger than ever. Some songs come on mature and understated, like "Nothing Happening," others surge with youthful enthusiasm, like "I Gotta Move." Then again, Kweller is at that midway point between 20 and 30. His lyrics trod the same fine line between young and not-so-young. Rhyming "losing control" with "rock and roll" ("I Don't Know Why") seems pretty facile, but then he busts out with the infinitely more original, "I'm-a just a penny on the train track / Waitin' for my judgment day / Come on baby girl let me see those legs / 'For I get flattened away" ("Penny on the Train Tracks"). It takes dexterity to combine humor and longing without letting both sides down. Repetitive, if heartfelt ballad "Thirteen" messes with the momentum, butBen Kwelleris yet another winner from the man of the same name. His fourth full-length concludes with "This is War," in which the music-mad scientist splices the garage-rock rhythms of the White Stripes with the pop smarts of the Raconteurs... and the Monkees (specifically "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone"). Has Kweller been listening to Jack White lately? Or did he just discoverNuggets? Either way, here's hoping he keeps it up as the tambourine-fueled rocker is one of his best.--Kathleen C. Fennessy