There is nothing ground-breaking here, and Lewis pays not even the faintest lip service to contemporary pop trends. But if you like quality songwriting delivered with panache, On The Line is on the money.
It's tender, it's quiet, it's loud. It's filled with passion, but never bitter, nor passive aggressively sweet. Time was given and taken in a manner that could only be construed through forgiveness.
Lewis winds her own tapestry here around a difficult time of her life, with the sweetest voice on offer right now in the Valley, the Canyon and anywhere else in L.A., every word clear and utterly convincing.
On the Line is full of such raw realizations laid bare — it's Lewis squaring up a difficult period of her life with an affected but steady gaze.
‘On the Line’ ... sounds as if its slow-burning gestation was all part of the plan - it’s a stately and unhurried affair that methodically untangles heartbreak with sharp storytelling and Lewis’ trademark rapier wit.
On The Line is a really good album. Jenny Lewis, a consummate star, delivers consistent pop tracks with soul-baring lyrics. It’s a unique pleasure for an artist who spoke to you deeply years ago to continue creating compelling material.
Stacked with radio-friendly earworms aplenty, this is no empty-calories pop. It's filled with inescapable themes—spirituality, life after death, addiction, loss—you can sink your teeth into, commiserate, and then sing along.
On The Line preserves the irreverence and honesty of her past work, but underscores that Lewis is finding a new, deeper musical path drawing from—but not beholden to—grief and rebirth.
On The Line, her best solo work to date, finds her trading chaos for peace and pain for parties. And West Coast rock combined with piano glam and Lewis’ lyrics makes for a most celebratory listen, indeed.
The '70s-tinted Wasted Youth is one Lewis' finest moments, juxtaposing an irresistibly poppy melody with a tale spelt out in its title, and few can wrap sadness and regret up quite so gloriously.
The overarching mood cannot help but be bittersweet.
This could be Jenny Lewis at her best—at the very least, it’s the freshest she and many of her backers have sounded in years.
Here, Lewis does what she does best: adds the glossy sparkle of Hollywood and a sunny Californian sheen to melancholy and nostalgia, with her most luxuriantly orchestrated album yet.
As glorious as the sound of this thing is, glinting with letter-perfect ‘70s-’80s rock sonics and touches of 21st-century psychedelic irony, the songs are the show, written by a woman of a particular age from a perspective well past jaded.
Making the personal feel representative of an entire city and a certain mythos is not for the fainthearted, but Lewis, with her tantalizingly specific lyrics and casual non sequiturs, does it so well throughout On the Line that you hardly notice the sleight of hand.
It's an album where the particulars dissipate after its conclusion, leaving behind pleasant thoughts but no distinct memories.
While On The Line is an album full of bleak subject matter, there’s an uplifting, even cathartic feel to much of it. It’s the sound of someone coming out of the darkness, and starting to see the light shining through.
The fourth album from the California indie rock icon features some of her strongest songwriting, sung gorgeously and told with biting detail.
Lewis’ songs have always been mature and introspective, but On the Line reaches new heights as she explores from a changed perspective.
On The Line may not be her strongest work, no matter how much it aims to be but it proves that Jenny Lewis doesn't need to try too hard to become one of the greats. She's already been one for a while.
It's the true embodiment of a studio album, and it shows—from the classic FM radio pop-rock of Red Bull and Hennessy to the soulful country-rock of Little White Dove, every instrument is put to use with seamless efficiency.
Lewis still shows herself to be able to put together some top-notch music and musicians, but there’s something decidedly lacking. Where before she remained well contained within a given musical idiom, here she wanders.
her first effort in a half decade is romantic and dreamy. a Jenny Lewis record that is folk-country is one of the craziest left turns i know of; her effort shines through, even when the album doesn’t.
while the indie icon’s solo career hasn’t panned out as expected, she is showing many signs of growth and maturity in her music.
The vibe I'm getting so far is Kacey Musgraves as a jaded middle aged divorcee, all weed smoke and rhinestones and heartache, but with just enough of that optimism left in her to keep the band playing. It's Jenny Lewis' best solo album yet.
I find the album a little dull, but enjoyable to listen. My favorite track is Red Bull & Hennessy.
her first effort in a half decade is romantic and dreamy. a Jenny Lewis record that is folk-country is one of the craziest left turns i know of; her effort shines through, even when the album doesn’t.
while the indie icon’s solo career hasn’t panned out as expected, she is showing many signs of growth and maturity in her music.
1 | Heads Gonna Roll 5:13 | 77 |
2 | Wasted Youth 4:13 | 77 |
3 | Red Bull & Hennessy 4:48 | 78 |
4 | Hollywood Lawn 4:34 | 70 |
5 | Do Si Do 3:54 | 70 |
6 | Dogwood 4:28 | 40 |
7 | Party Clown 4:09 | 49 |
8 | Little White Dove 4:49 | 40 |
9 | Taffy 4:27 | 30 |
10 | On the Line 3:48 | 56 |
11 | Rabbit Hole 2:46 | 40 |
#6 | / | Thrillist |
#7 | / | Entertainment Weekly |
#8 | / | The Young Folks |
#9 | / | The Ringer |
#10 | / | Fresh Air: Ken Tucker |
#12 | / | MOJO |
#12 | / | Paste |
#13 | / | Rolling Stone |
#14 | / | No Ripcord |
#15 | / | The A.V. Club |