Acid Tongue
Encyclopedia
Acid Tongue is the second studio album
by American singer-songwriter
Jenny Lewis
, released in September 2008 (see 2008 in music
) through Warner Bros.
and Rough Trade Records
. Inspired by jam session
s, the album was recorded in January 2008 in Van Nuys, California
with the intent of capturing a more live feeling than 2006's Rabbit Fur Coat
. Lewis worked with a number of guest musicians and wrote the album with boyfriend Johnathan Rice
. Lewis, Rice, Jason Lader, and Dave Scher produced the album. Acid Tongue features musical styles ranging from indie rock
to alternative country
and Americana
.
Acid Tongue was released to generally favorable reviews from contemporary music critics, receiving praise for Lewis' lyrics and vocals. However, some reviewers criticized the numerous collaborations and felt the sound overwhelmed Lewis. The album charted at number twenty-two in the United States and number fifty-five in the United Kingdom.
. It didn't work, so Lewis recorded it for a second solo album.
According to the Los Angeles Times
, Lewis was inspired by house parties at Jonathan Wilson
's Laurel Canyon
home. "We'd go to these jams in the canyon. They're fantastic. Jonathan invites older session musicians from the real Laurel Canyon era, and younger people who are just starting their bands who happen to live in the canyon, and we all get together and sing Grateful Dead
covers and J. J. Cale songs." Lewis herself has said that it "rocks a little harder," in contrast to Rabbit Fur Coat
s folk rock
influences. Lewis also used Rilo Kiley's Under the Blacklight, which was notably polished compared to the band's earlier work, "as a reference point to go in the complete opposite direction". She explained that every song she writes is "a response to the thing that I've written before". "It's even as simple as, 'OK, I've written a ballad, now I want to push myself to write something that's up tempo.' If I'm writing about myself, well, that subject can be tiresome, so then I focus on character-driven songs. So I'm always doing this back-and-forth just to keep myself interested."
The album was recorded in just three weeks at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, California. The album was co-produced by Lewis's boyfriend Johnathan Rice
, former Beachwood Sparks
and All Night Radio
member Dave Scher, and Under the Blacklight
producer Jason Lader. Lewis attempted to record as many of the songs live as possible. "We did it in the studio for my 32nd birthday," according to Lewis, "and we had a great time, collaborating with a bunch of friends. It was definitely a lot less focused than Rabbit Fur Coat. With that record I had a very specific vision, [...] but with this record it was really more about the vibe, the songs and the collaborations". A source quoted by Entertainment Weekly
said that the album "all sounds super natural, nice, and simple. Like it doesn't belong in any decade. It's just timeless." The album was inspired by a variety of musical styles, including alternative country
, Americana
, indie rock
, and soul
.
Talking to Nashville Scene
, Lewis said that the songs "weren't written off-the-cuff, but they were definitely recorded, not carelessly, but with a real effort to capture a live feeling, particularly with the vocals". Lewis continued, "To me, it's a big step in a different direction...and to be able to sink into the vocal take while the band was playing was a very liberating experience for me." Lewis told The A.V. Club
, "We played them on the road 100 times, so we knew that we could walk into the studio and record them the same way. [...] It wasn't really a studio record, but more of a live record in some ways. It was about getting the band together and creating an atmosphere that lent itself to good chemistry between the band members and trying to capture as much of the record live as we could." As "a child of digital generation", Lewis had generally worked with Pro Tools
, but wanted to capture the "not-perfect sound" of some of her favorite records.
The musicians were split into two separate bands. The Band A setup (Jason Boesel
, Davey Faragher
, Johnathan Rice
, and Blake Mills) would generally play the more rock and roll songs, while Band B would play the ballads.
of the Chicago Tribune
. "I may be a liar, or I may not be one." The song also referenced a childhood experience of Lewis', in which she experienced LSD
at the age of 14.
"The Next Messiah", a nine-minute "ode to Barbra Streisand and the devil," was "tracked completely live, with all the transitions, and it's the most exciting thing I've ever been involved with in the studio. I wish the rest of the record had been more like that." The song is "actually three different songs that Johnathan Rice and myself wrote together," according to Lewis. "I happen to be a Barbra Streisand fan, and Barbra Streisand fancies a medley, so we discussed stringing the three songs together."
The album features a duet with Elvis Costello
, "Carpetbaggers". The song was written by Lewis' boyfriend, Johnathan Rice
, to be performed on the Rabbit Fur Coat tour, because they were lacking uptempo songs. Lewis wanted to "make it less country and a little more pop. So I emailed Elvis. He mentioned he had two new songs and would we be open to recording them." These songs became part of Costello's Momofuku.
She & Him
's Zooey Deschanel
provides backing vocals on a number of songs, while her bandmate M. Ward
plays "a moody guitar part" on "Pretty Bird". Ward said that Acid Tongue is "the greatest record Jenny has ever made." There are a number of other collaborations on Acid Tongue; fellow Rilo Kiley member Jason Boesel
, Davey Faragher
of Costello's band The Imposters, Benji Hughes, Ana
and Paz Lenchantin
, Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes
, and Jonathan Wilson
all make contributions. The album features production credits from Lewis' boyfriend Johnathan Rice
, Farmer Dave Scher, and Rilo Kiley producer Jason Lader.
Lewis's sister Leslie Lewis provides backing vocals on two tracks, while her father Eddie Gordon plays the bass harp
and harmonica
. "He was ill last year, so we started speaking to one another," Lewis told The Independent
. "There were no hard feelings. He just wasn't around. Every couple of years I'd get a postcard from the road – a picture of him standing next to a giant ice-sculpture of a crab, in Alaska. He was a very mysterious character. But I thought this was the right time to bring him in." "The Next Messiah" was influenced by her father. "When someone isn't around you create what you imagine your father might be – 'a race-car driver, a four-leaf clover'," Lewis explained. Lewis has said that a lot of her inspiration, for both Acid Tongue and previous work, comes from her parents. Lewis also told The Independent, "I just don't know them very well. And I'm still trying to understand what happened [with the divorce] and why. It's this blank slate, I can't even remember what happened. But for some reason, these two people are so incredibly strange and funny and beautiful and messed up, that I want to keep writing about them... and maybe figure out who I am in the process."
announced that Lewis had been working on the album in February 2008. Prior to Acid Tongues release, Lewis allowed listeners to hear the title track by calling the toll-free telephone number
1-888-717-ACID. The song was later replaced by a recording announcing two "secret" performances in September, including a password and website to obtain tickets. Additionally, several videos were put up on Lewis' official YouTube
page. The videos show Lewis (or band mates) at home being visited by Ben Gibbard
, of Death Cab for Cutie
and The Postal Service
, who has arrived with balloons to listen to the new album. Ben is told that the album isn't out yet, but Lewis agrees to let him hear "just one song". This is followed by a recording of the title track "Acid Tongue."
On September 9, the entire album was made available in streaming format on Lewis' official MySpace
page. Though not technically downloadable, it was quickly accessed through other means and made available through file sharing. The album was released in both CD and LP
formats in a number of territories throughout late September. Select independent record stores also gave away a 7" single of "The Next Messiah", split between the two sides of the record. Lewis toured in support of the album's release, including an appearance at the Austin City Limits Festival and opening for Conor Oberst
.
. Creative Loafing
said that while Rabbit Fur Coat "glided through an Appalachian dream world", Lewis "stomps her boots while exploring similar terrain" on Acid Tongue. The review continued that while the album "includes plenty of quirky meditations on lost love that recall her previous adventures, [...] well-placed jolts give Acid Tongue greater balance, a component that's lacking on Rabbit Fur Coat." According to The Sunday Times
, "the results are magnificent, [...] but occasionally they are a shaky misstep." Chicago Sun-Times
writer Jim DeRogatis
called Acid Tongue "sensual and entrancing." The Daily Trojan
labeled the tracks as "psychedelic, occasionally sexy, but always timeless", although noting that the album "lacks a thematic focus that can be found on every other album Lewis has released".
Filter
referred to the album's title track as "simply beautiful, causing goosebumps to the arms of even the toughest man. [...] It's rather deep, despite its simplicity, a difficult task to say the least." It has also been called "a prime example of Lewis' simplistic genius." The Times said "the verses in the title track tickle and tease so that you are practically salivating for the chorus."
It was also noted that Lewis' "delicately seductive vocals are more versatile", with the Detroit Free Press
stating that her voice "smoothly mixes classic country with pop and indie-rock, Lewis is as adept on the ballads as she is on the rave-ups." The Times
considered Lewis' songwriting "leagues ahead of anything that she has done in the past" and her vocals sound "as though she means it". DeRogatis pointed out that "Lewis' impressive strength as both a singer and a songwriter is that she makes every listener feel as if her music was crafted just for them." However, Angela Zimmerman of Crawdaddy!
felt that Lewis often used a "pervasive soprano that she can't quite execute" on tracks like "Black Sand", "Pretty Bird", "Trying My Best to Love You", and "Jack Killed Mom".
Pitchfork Media
said that while Acid Tongue is "immediately pleasurable," the album's downfall is that "Lewis does such a good job of nailing choice sounds and styles from pop's past that you can't help getting reeled in right away; only upon later reflection do you realize that much of her success lies in evoking something else great rather than achieving a greatness more uniquely her own." The review continued, "In these straitjacketed settings, Lewis' considerable strengths as a lyricist and performer just aren't given sufficient room to fully emerge." Time
noted that Acid Tongue "sprawl with misplaced ambition" and that only the title track sticks. Another review observed, "Lewis seems to be [...] on her way to a more definitive musical existence [...] but she doesn’t quite seem to know yet." Acid Tongue was also slated for its "hip-hop-like roster of unnecessary cameos. Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward of She and Him make sense, but Elvis Costello sounds intrusive during his duet on "Carpetbaggers," while the black Crowes' Chris Robinson is just superfluous." Crawdaddy!s Zimmerman said that while "these appearances help flavor the record, [...] I miss the Watson Twins
."
The album was made number 14 in Blender
' s 33 Best Albums of 2008 list, and number 46 in Q
' s 50 Best Albums of the Year 2008. It was also voted number 18 in Rolling Stone
' s Readers' Top 30 Albums of 2008 list. "Acid Tongue" was number 66 on Rolling Stone
at number 24 with approximately 21,000 copies sold. It also reached number fifty-five on the UK Albums Chart
.
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by American singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Jenny Lewis
Jenny Lewis
Jennifer Diane Lewis , is an American singer-songwriter musician and actress. She was the primary vocalist of the indie rock band Rilo Kiley, and has released two solo albums. She currently performs as part of the duo Jenny & Johnny with boyfriend Johnathan Rice...
, released in September 2008 (see 2008 in music
2008 in music
2008 was a huge year in music history with the emergence of pop superstars Lady Gaga and Katy Perry into the mainstream. Also, this is the year that is widely agreed upon by critics as the start of the fall of hip hop from the mainstream and the rise of Synthpop into the mainstream due to acts such...
) through Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
and Rough Trade Records
Rough Trade Records
Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. It was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove...
. Inspired by jam session
Jam session
Jam sessions are often used by musicians to develop new material, find suitable arrangements, or simply as a social gathering and communal practice session. Jam sessions may be based upon existing songs or forms, may be loosely based on an agreed chord progression or chart suggested by one...
s, the album was recorded in January 2008 in Van Nuys, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
with the intent of capturing a more live feeling than 2006's Rabbit Fur Coat
Rabbit Fur Coat
Rabbit Fur Coat is an album by Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley, featuring The Watson Twins. It was released in the United States on January 24, 2006 by Team Love. Lewis has described the album as a "sort of soul record". The album contains a cover of the Traveling Wilburys song "Handle With Care",...
. Lewis worked with a number of guest musicians and wrote the album with boyfriend Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice is a Scottish-American singer-songwriter. His first album, Trouble is Real, was released on Reprise Records on April 26, 2005. His follow up, Further North, was released by Reprise on September 11, 2007...
. Lewis, Rice, Jason Lader, and Dave Scher produced the album. Acid Tongue features musical styles ranging from indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
to alternative country
Alternative country
Alternative country is a loosely defined sub-genre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music...
and Americana
Americana (music)
Americana is an amalgam of roots musics formed by the confluence of the shared and varied traditions that make up the American musical ethos; specifically those sounds that are merged from folk, country, blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll and other external influential styles...
.
Acid Tongue was released to generally favorable reviews from contemporary music critics, receiving praise for Lewis' lyrics and vocals. However, some reviewers criticized the numerous collaborations and felt the sound overwhelmed Lewis. The album charted at number twenty-two in the United States and number fifty-five in the United Kingdom.
Influences and recording
Lewis first began work on Acid Tongue after writing the title track on her Rabbit Fur Coat tour. She attempted to work out an arrangement for Rilo Kiley's Under the BlacklightUnder the Blacklight
Under the Blacklight is the fourth and final full-length studio album released by American alternative rock band Rilo Kiley. It was released on August 20, 2007, in the United Kingdom - three years and three days after the release of their third album, More Adventurous. Warner Bros. Records released...
. It didn't work, so Lewis recorded it for a second solo album.
According to the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, Lewis was inspired by house parties at Jonathan Wilson
Jonathan Wilson (musician)
Jonathan Wilson is an American musician and producer who was born in Forest City, North Carolina in 1974.- Solo Artist :Wilson completed a solo album titled, Frankie Ray in 2007. The record was never officially released...
's Laurel Canyon
Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles, California
Laurel Canyon is a canyon neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was first developed in the 1910s, and became a part of the city of Los Angeles in 1923 ....
home. "We'd go to these jams in the canyon. They're fantastic. Jonathan invites older session musicians from the real Laurel Canyon era, and younger people who are just starting their bands who happen to live in the canyon, and we all get together and sing Grateful Dead
Grateful Dead
The Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in 1965 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The band was known for its unique and eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, bluegrass, blues, reggae, country, improvisational jazz, psychedelia, and space rock, and for live performances of long...
covers and J. J. Cale songs." Lewis herself has said that it "rocks a little harder," in contrast to Rabbit Fur Coat
Rabbit Fur Coat
Rabbit Fur Coat is an album by Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley, featuring The Watson Twins. It was released in the United States on January 24, 2006 by Team Love. Lewis has described the album as a "sort of soul record". The album contains a cover of the Traveling Wilburys song "Handle With Care",...
s folk rock
Folk rock
Folk rock is a musical genre combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
influences. Lewis also used Rilo Kiley's Under the Blacklight, which was notably polished compared to the band's earlier work, "as a reference point to go in the complete opposite direction". She explained that every song she writes is "a response to the thing that I've written before". "It's even as simple as, 'OK, I've written a ballad, now I want to push myself to write something that's up tempo.' If I'm writing about myself, well, that subject can be tiresome, so then I focus on character-driven songs. So I'm always doing this back-and-forth just to keep myself interested."
The album was recorded in just three weeks at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, California. The album was co-produced by Lewis's boyfriend Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice is a Scottish-American singer-songwriter. His first album, Trouble is Real, was released on Reprise Records on April 26, 2005. His follow up, Further North, was released by Reprise on September 11, 2007...
, former Beachwood Sparks
Beachwood Sparks
Beachwood Sparks are an American alternative country band from Los Angeles. A Daily Telegraph article on America's underground psychedelic pop scene described Beachwood Sparks as "country through a kaleidoscope".-Biography:...
and All Night Radio
All Night Radio
All Night Radio was an American indie rock band formed in Los Angeles, California.-History:Dave Scher and Jimi Hey, hail from Los Angeles, California, and have known each other since 1995, when a 16 year-old Hey would call Scher's late-night radio program on KXLU requesting Six Finger Satellite on...
member Dave Scher, and Under the Blacklight
Under the Blacklight
Under the Blacklight is the fourth and final full-length studio album released by American alternative rock band Rilo Kiley. It was released on August 20, 2007, in the United Kingdom - three years and three days after the release of their third album, More Adventurous. Warner Bros. Records released...
producer Jason Lader. Lewis attempted to record as many of the songs live as possible. "We did it in the studio for my 32nd birthday," according to Lewis, "and we had a great time, collaborating with a bunch of friends. It was definitely a lot less focused than Rabbit Fur Coat. With that record I had a very specific vision, [...] but with this record it was really more about the vibe, the songs and the collaborations". A source quoted by Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
said that the album "all sounds super natural, nice, and simple. Like it doesn't belong in any decade. It's just timeless." The album was inspired by a variety of musical styles, including alternative country
Alternative country
Alternative country is a loosely defined sub-genre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music...
, Americana
Americana (music)
Americana is an amalgam of roots musics formed by the confluence of the shared and varied traditions that make up the American musical ethos; specifically those sounds that are merged from folk, country, blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll and other external influential styles...
, indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
, and soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
.
Talking to Nashville Scene
Nashville Scene
Nashville Scene is an alternative newsweekly in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1989, became a part of Village Voice Media in 1999, and later joined the ranks of sixteen other publications after a merger of Village Voice Media with New Times Media early in 2006. In 2009 the paper was...
, Lewis said that the songs "weren't written off-the-cuff, but they were definitely recorded, not carelessly, but with a real effort to capture a live feeling, particularly with the vocals". Lewis continued, "To me, it's a big step in a different direction...and to be able to sink into the vocal take while the band was playing was a very liberating experience for me." Lewis told The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
, "We played them on the road 100 times, so we knew that we could walk into the studio and record them the same way. [...] It wasn't really a studio record, but more of a live record in some ways. It was about getting the band together and creating an atmosphere that lent itself to good chemistry between the band members and trying to capture as much of the record live as we could." As "a child of digital generation", Lewis had generally worked with Pro Tools
Pro Tools
Pro Tools is a digital audio workstation platform for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, developed and manufactured by Avid Technology. It is widely used by professionals throughout the audio industries for recording and editing in music production, film scoring, film, and television...
, but wanted to capture the "not-perfect sound" of some of her favorite records.
The musicians were split into two separate bands. The Band A setup (Jason Boesel
Jason Boesel
Jason Boesel was the drummer for Rilo Kiley and has also played with The Elected. He also drummed in the Bright Eyes touring band during their 2005 tour, and went on to write the liner notes for the consequent Bright Eyes live album, Motion Sickness and contributing to Bright Eyes' 2007 record,...
, Davey Faragher
Davey Faragher
Davey Faragher is an American bass guitarist from Redlands, California. Faragher's career took off and received critical notice as a founding member of the nineties band, Cracker, and his following work with The Imposters, the backing band for Elvis Costello since 2001.Faragher is an accomplished...
, Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice is a Scottish-American singer-songwriter. His first album, Trouble is Real, was released on Reprise Records on April 26, 2005. His follow up, Further North, was released by Reprise on September 11, 2007...
, and Blake Mills) would generally play the more rock and roll songs, while Band B would play the ballads.
Composition
The album's title track was described by Lewis as her "thinly veiled way of getting out of writing a strictly 'confessional' song," Lewis told Greg KotGreg Kot
Greg Kot is an American writer and journalist. Since 1990, Kot has been the music critic at the Chicago Tribune, where he has covered popular music and reported on music-related social, political and business issues...
of the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
. "I may be a liar, or I may not be one." The song also referenced a childhood experience of Lewis', in which she experienced LSD
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
at the age of 14.
"The Next Messiah", a nine-minute "ode to Barbra Streisand and the devil," was "tracked completely live, with all the transitions, and it's the most exciting thing I've ever been involved with in the studio. I wish the rest of the record had been more like that." The song is "actually three different songs that Johnathan Rice and myself wrote together," according to Lewis. "I happen to be a Barbra Streisand fan, and Barbra Streisand fancies a medley, so we discussed stringing the three songs together."
The album features a duet with Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, "Carpetbaggers". The song was written by Lewis' boyfriend, Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice is a Scottish-American singer-songwriter. His first album, Trouble is Real, was released on Reprise Records on April 26, 2005. His follow up, Further North, was released by Reprise on September 11, 2007...
, to be performed on the Rabbit Fur Coat tour, because they were lacking uptempo songs. Lewis wanted to "make it less country and a little more pop. So I emailed Elvis. He mentioned he had two new songs and would we be open to recording them." These songs became part of Costello's Momofuku.
She & Him
She & Him
She & Him is an American indie pop duo consisting of Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward . The band's first album, Volume One, was released on Merge Records in March 2008...
's Zooey Deschanel
Zooey Deschanel
Zooey Claire Deschanel is an American actress, musician, and singer-songwriter. In 1999, Deschanel made her film debut in Mumford, followed by her breakout role as young protagonist William Miller's troubled older sister Anita in Cameron Crowe's 2000 semi-autobiographical film Almost Famous...
provides backing vocals on a number of songs, while her bandmate M. Ward
M. Ward
Matthew Stephen Ward, known by his stage name M. Ward, is a singer-songwriter and guitarist who rose to prominence in the Portland, Oregon music scene. In addition to his solo work he is known as a member of She & Him and Monsters of Folk.-Career:...
plays "a moody guitar part" on "Pretty Bird". Ward said that Acid Tongue is "the greatest record Jenny has ever made." There are a number of other collaborations on Acid Tongue; fellow Rilo Kiley member Jason Boesel
Jason Boesel
Jason Boesel was the drummer for Rilo Kiley and has also played with The Elected. He also drummed in the Bright Eyes touring band during their 2005 tour, and went on to write the liner notes for the consequent Bright Eyes live album, Motion Sickness and contributing to Bright Eyes' 2007 record,...
, Davey Faragher
Davey Faragher
Davey Faragher is an American bass guitarist from Redlands, California. Faragher's career took off and received critical notice as a founding member of the nineties band, Cracker, and his following work with The Imposters, the backing band for Elvis Costello since 2001.Faragher is an accomplished...
of Costello's band The Imposters, Benji Hughes, Ana
Ana Lenchantin
Ana Lenchantin is an Argentine-American cellist known for frequent appearances with American rock bands such as Into the Presence The Eels, Gnarls Barkley, No Doubt, Arthur Lee and Love, A Perfect Circle, Nine Inch Nails, Queens of the Stone Age, 30 Seconds to Mars, Brian Wilson, Billy Corgan,...
and Paz Lenchantin
Paz Lenchantin
Paz Lenchantin is an American musician of French ancestry. She came to Los Angeles, California with her family at the age of four....
, Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes
The Black Crowes
The Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in 1989. Their discography includes nine studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer George Drakoulias and released their debut album, Shake Your Money Maker, the...
, and Jonathan Wilson
Jonathan Wilson (musician)
Jonathan Wilson is an American musician and producer who was born in Forest City, North Carolina in 1974.- Solo Artist :Wilson completed a solo album titled, Frankie Ray in 2007. The record was never officially released...
all make contributions. The album features production credits from Lewis' boyfriend Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice is a Scottish-American singer-songwriter. His first album, Trouble is Real, was released on Reprise Records on April 26, 2005. His follow up, Further North, was released by Reprise on September 11, 2007...
, Farmer Dave Scher, and Rilo Kiley producer Jason Lader.
Lewis's sister Leslie Lewis provides backing vocals on two tracks, while her father Eddie Gordon plays the bass harp
Harp
The harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
and harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
. "He was ill last year, so we started speaking to one another," Lewis told The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
. "There were no hard feelings. He just wasn't around. Every couple of years I'd get a postcard from the road – a picture of him standing next to a giant ice-sculpture of a crab, in Alaska. He was a very mysterious character. But I thought this was the right time to bring him in." "The Next Messiah" was influenced by her father. "When someone isn't around you create what you imagine your father might be – 'a race-car driver, a four-leaf clover'," Lewis explained. Lewis has said that a lot of her inspiration, for both Acid Tongue and previous work, comes from her parents. Lewis also told The Independent, "I just don't know them very well. And I'm still trying to understand what happened [with the divorce] and why. It's this blank slate, I can't even remember what happened. But for some reason, these two people are so incredibly strange and funny and beautiful and messed up, that I want to keep writing about them... and maybe figure out who I am in the process."
Release
Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
announced that Lewis had been working on the album in February 2008. Prior to Acid Tongues release, Lewis allowed listeners to hear the title track by calling the toll-free telephone number
Toll-free telephone number
A toll-free, Freecall, Freephone, 800, 0800 or 1-800 number is a special telephone number which is free to the calling party, and instead the telephone carrier charges the called party the cost of the call...
1-888-717-ACID. The song was later replaced by a recording announcing two "secret" performances in September, including a password and website to obtain tickets. Additionally, several videos were put up on Lewis' official YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
page. The videos show Lewis (or band mates) at home being visited by Ben Gibbard
Ben Gibbard
Benjamin "Ben" Gibbard is an American musician known as a member of several successful indie rock bands. He is the lead singer of Death Cab for Cutie and The Postal Service, and is also known for his project ¡All-Time Quarterback! and his first band, Pinwheel.-Personal life and career:Gibbard was...
, of Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie is an American alternative rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. The band consists of Ben Gibbard , Chris Walla , Nick Harmer and Jason McGerr ....
and The Postal Service
The Postal Service
The Postal Service is an American electronic indie pop band composed of vocalist Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie and producer Jimmy Tamborello of Dntel and Headset.-Background:...
, who has arrived with balloons to listen to the new album. Ben is told that the album isn't out yet, but Lewis agrees to let him hear "just one song". This is followed by a recording of the title track "Acid Tongue."
On September 9, the entire album was made available in streaming format on Lewis' official MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
page. Though not technically downloadable, it was quickly accessed through other means and made available through file sharing. The album was released in both CD and LP
LP album
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
formats in a number of territories throughout late September. Select independent record stores also gave away a 7" single of "The Next Messiah", split between the two sides of the record. Lewis toured in support of the album's release, including an appearance at the Austin City Limits Festival and opening for Conor Oberst
Conor Oberst
Conor Mullen Oberst is an American singer-songwriter best known for his work in Bright Eyes. He has also played in several other bands, including Desaparecidos, Norman Bailer , Commander Venus, Park Ave., Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band, and Monsters of Folk.-Musical career:Oberst began...
.
Critical reception
Acid Tongue has received generally favorable reviews, scoring a 75% on review aggregator MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
. Creative Loafing
Creative Loafing
CL Inc. is the Tampa, Florida-based publisher of three city newsweeklies and their associated websites. Each of the papers focuses on local news, politics, arts and entertainment, and restaurants...
said that while Rabbit Fur Coat "glided through an Appalachian dream world", Lewis "stomps her boots while exploring similar terrain" on Acid Tongue. The review continued that while the album "includes plenty of quirky meditations on lost love that recall her previous adventures, [...] well-placed jolts give Acid Tongue greater balance, a component that's lacking on Rabbit Fur Coat." According to The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
, "the results are magnificent, [...] but occasionally they are a shaky misstep." Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
writer Jim DeRogatis
Jim DeRogatis
James "Jim" DeRogatis is an American music critic and co-host of Sound Opinions. DeRogatis has written articles for magazines such as Spin, Guitar World and Modern Drummer, and for fifteen years was the pop music critic for the Chicago Sun-Times.He joined Columbia College Chicago as a full-time...
called Acid Tongue "sensual and entrancing." The Daily Trojan
Daily Trojan
The Daily Trojan, or "DT," is the student newspaper of the University of Southern California. The newspaper is a forum for student expression and is written, edited, and managed by university students. The paper is intended to inform USC students, faculty, and staff on the latest news and provide...
labeled the tracks as "psychedelic, occasionally sexy, but always timeless", although noting that the album "lacks a thematic focus that can be found on every other album Lewis has released".
Filter
Filter (magazine)
FILTER, the publication that promises us that "Good music will prevail," is a seasonal American music and off-beat entertainment magazine. It features commentary and photos of up-and-coming musicians and filmmakers ranging from actors to writer-directors...
referred to the album's title track as "simply beautiful, causing goosebumps to the arms of even the toughest man. [...] It's rather deep, despite its simplicity, a difficult task to say the least." It has also been called "a prime example of Lewis' simplistic genius." The Times said "the verses in the title track tickle and tease so that you are practically salivating for the chorus."
It was also noted that Lewis' "delicately seductive vocals are more versatile", with the Detroit Free Press
Detroit Free Press
The Detroit Free Press is the largest daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, USA. The Sunday edition is entitled the Sunday Free Press. It is sometimes informally referred to as the "Freep"...
stating that her voice "smoothly mixes classic country with pop and indie-rock, Lewis is as adept on the ballads as she is on the rave-ups." The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
considered Lewis' songwriting "leagues ahead of anything that she has done in the past" and her vocals sound "as though she means it". DeRogatis pointed out that "Lewis' impressive strength as both a singer and a songwriter is that she makes every listener feel as if her music was crafted just for them." However, Angela Zimmerman of Crawdaddy!
Crawdaddy!
Crawdaddy! was the first U.S. magazine of rock and roll music criticism. Created in 1966 by college student Paul Williams in response to the increasing sophistication and cultural influence of popular music, Crawdaddy! was self-described as "the first magazine to take rock and roll...
felt that Lewis often used a "pervasive soprano that she can't quite execute" on tracks like "Black Sand", "Pretty Bird", "Trying My Best to Love You", and "Jack Killed Mom".
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
said that while Acid Tongue is "immediately pleasurable," the album's downfall is that "Lewis does such a good job of nailing choice sounds and styles from pop's past that you can't help getting reeled in right away; only upon later reflection do you realize that much of her success lies in evoking something else great rather than achieving a greatness more uniquely her own." The review continued, "In these straitjacketed settings, Lewis' considerable strengths as a lyricist and performer just aren't given sufficient room to fully emerge." Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
noted that Acid Tongue "sprawl with misplaced ambition" and that only the title track sticks. Another review observed, "Lewis seems to be [...] on her way to a more definitive musical existence [...] but she doesn’t quite seem to know yet." Acid Tongue was also slated for its "hip-hop-like roster of unnecessary cameos. Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward of She and Him make sense, but Elvis Costello sounds intrusive during his duet on "Carpetbaggers," while the black Crowes' Chris Robinson is just superfluous." Crawdaddy!s Zimmerman said that while "these appearances help flavor the record, [...] I miss the Watson Twins
The Watson Twins
The Watson Twins are an American musical group based in Los Angeles with alternative country and indie folk influences. They are identical twin sisters named Chandra and Leigh Watson....
."
The album was made number 14 in Blender
Blender (magazine)
Blender was an American music magazine that billed itself as "the ultimate guide to music and more". It was also known for sometimes steamy pictorials of celebrities....
Q (magazine)
Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
Track listing
Charts and certifications
Acid Tongue entered the Billboard 200Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
at number 24 with approximately 21,000 copies sold. It also reached number fifty-five on the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
.
| Chart (2007) | Peak Position | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
55 | |
| U.S. United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
24 | 21,000+ |
Release history
| Region | Date | Label | Format | Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia Australia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... |
September 20, 2008 | Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. It was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove... |
CD Compact Disc The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,... |
RTRADCD491 |
| United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
September 22, 2008 | Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. It was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove... |
CD Compact Disc The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,... |
RTRADCD491 |
| LP LP album The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry... |
RTRADLP491 | |||
| United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
September 23, 2008 | Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies... |
CD Compact Disc The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,... |
508668 |
| LP LP album The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry... |
||||
| Hong Kong Hong Kong Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour... |
September 26, 2008 | Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. It was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove... |
CD Compact Disc The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,... |
RTRADCD491 |
| Canada Canada Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... |
September 30, 2008 | Warner Music Canada Warner Music Canada Warner Music Canada is the Canadian division of Warner Music Group. The label previously operated as WEA Canada, the Canadian subsidiary of WEA International, which later changed its name to Warner Music International in 1990. It was founded in 1967 as Warner Reprise Canada Ltd... |
CD Compact Disc The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,... |
2508668 |
| Japan Japan Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south... |
November 26, 2008 | Warner Music Group Warner Music Group Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies... |
CD Compact Disc The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,... |
WPCB10098 |
Personnel
- Production — Farmer Dave Scher, Jason Lader, Jenny LewisJenny LewisJennifer Diane Lewis , is an American singer-songwriter musician and actress. She was the primary vocalist of the indie rock band Rilo Kiley, and has released two solo albums. She currently performs as part of the duo Jenny & Johnny with boyfriend Johnathan Rice...
, Johnathan RiceJohnathan RiceJohnathan Rice is a Scottish-American singer-songwriter. His first album, Trouble is Real, was released on Reprise Records on April 26, 2005. His follow up, Further North, was released by Reprise on September 11, 2007... - Artwork design — Jenny Lewis, Pierre De Reeder
- Photography — Autumn de WildeAutumn de WildeAutumn de Wilde is an American photographer best known for her portraiture and commercial work photography of musicians.-Early life:...
- Black Sand
- Jenny Lewis — main vocals, piano, vibraphone
- Barbara Gruska — drums
- Jason Lader — bass
- Ana LenchantinAna LenchantinAna Lenchantin is an Argentine-American cellist known for frequent appearances with American rock bands such as Into the Presence The Eels, Gnarls Barkley, No Doubt, Arthur Lee and Love, A Perfect Circle, Nine Inch Nails, Queens of the Stone Age, 30 Seconds to Mars, Brian Wilson, Billy Corgan,...
— cello - Paz LenchantinPaz LenchantinPaz Lenchantin is an American musician of French ancestry. She came to Los Angeles, California with her family at the age of four....
— violin - Wes Precourt — violin
- Pretty Bird
- Jenny Lewis — main vocals
- Barbara Gruska — drums
- Johnathan RiceJohnathan RiceJohnathan Rice is a Scottish-American singer-songwriter. His first album, Trouble is Real, was released on Reprise Records on April 26, 2005. His follow up, Further North, was released by Reprise on September 11, 2007...
— background vocals - Farmer Dave Scher — background vocals
- M. WardM. WardMatthew Stephen Ward, known by his stage name M. Ward, is a singer-songwriter and guitarist who rose to prominence in the Portland, Oregon music scene. In addition to his solo work he is known as a member of She & Him and Monsters of Folk.-Career:...
— background vocals, guitar (acoustic and electric) - Jonathan WilsonJonathan Wilson (musician)Jonathan Wilson is an American musician and producer who was born in Forest City, North Carolina in 1974.- Solo Artist :Wilson completed a solo album titled, Frankie Ray in 2007. The record was never officially released...
— background vocals, bass
- The Next Messiah
- Jenny Lewis — main vocals
- Jason BoeselJason BoeselJason Boesel was the drummer for Rilo Kiley and has also played with The Elected. He also drummed in the Bright Eyes touring band during their 2005 tour, and went on to write the liner notes for the consequent Bright Eyes live album, Motion Sickness and contributing to Bright Eyes' 2007 record,...
— drums - Vanesa CorbalaWhispertown2000The Whispertown 2000 are an indie band from Los Angeles, California. They have toured with several prominent indie artists in the past few years, including Bright Eyes, Maria Taylor, Johnathan Rice, Margot & the Nuclear So and So's, Jenny Lewis, The Breeders and The Elected.-Members:*Morgan Nagler...
— background vocals - Zooey DeschanelZooey DeschanelZooey Claire Deschanel is an American actress, musician, and singer-songwriter. In 1999, Deschanel made her film debut in Mumford, followed by her breakout role as young protagonist William Miller's troubled older sister Anita in Cameron Crowe's 2000 semi-autobiographical film Almost Famous...
— background vocals - Davey FaragherDavey FaragherDavey Faragher is an American bass guitarist from Redlands, California. Faragher's career took off and received critical notice as a founding member of the nineties band, Cracker, and his following work with The Imposters, the backing band for Elvis Costello since 2001.Faragher is an accomplished...
— bass - Blake Mills — electric guitar
- Morgan Nagler — whispered vocals
- Johnathan Rice — background vocals, acoustic guitar
- Chris Robinson — background vocals
- Farmer Dave Scher — background vocals
- Jonathan Wilson — background vocals
- Bad Man's World
- Jenny Lewis — main vocals, piano
- Barbara Gruska — drums
- Jason Lader — bass
- Ana Lenchantin — cello
- Paz Lenchantin — violin
- Wes Precourt — violin
- Farmer Dave Scher — organ
- Acid Tongue
- Jenny Lewis — main vocals, acoustic guitar
- Johnathan Rice — background vocals
- Chris Robinson — background vocals
- Farmer Dave Scher — background vocals
- Jonathan Wilson — background vocals
- See Fernando
- Jenny Lewis — main vocals
- Jason Boesel — drums
- Vanesa Corbala — background vocals
- Davey Faragher — bass
- Leslie Lewis — background vocals
- Johnathan Rice — acoustic and electric guitar
- Farmer Dave Scher — steel guitar
- Godspeed
- Jenny Lewis — main vocals, piano
- Barbara Gruska — drums
- Ana Lenchantin — cello
- Paz Lenchantin — violin
- Wes Precourt — violin
- Jonathan Wilson — bass
- Carpetbaggers
- Jenny Lewis — main vocals
- Jason Boesel — drums
- Vanesa Corbala — background vocals
- Elvis CostelloElvis CostelloElvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
— vocals - Zooey Deschanel — background vocals
- Davey Faragher — bass
- Blake Mills — electric guitar
- Johnathan Rice — acoustic guitar
- Trying My Best to Love You
- Jenny Lewis — main vocals, piano
- Vanesa Corbala — background vocals
- Zooey Deschanel — background vocals
- Ana Lenchantin — cello
- Leslie Lewis — background vocals
- Paz Lenchantin — violin
- Wes Precourt — violin
- Jack Killed Mom
- Jenny Lewis — main vocals, piano
- Jason Boesel — drums, tambourine
- Vanesa Corbala — background vocals
- Zooey Deschanel — background vocals
- Davey Faragher — bass
- Eddie Gordon — harmonica
- Benji Hughes — spoken word vocals
- Blake Mills — background vocals
- Farmer Dave Scher — omnichord
- Tod Adrian WisenbakerWhispertown2000The Whispertown 2000 are an indie band from Los Angeles, California. They have toured with several prominent indie artists in the past few years, including Bright Eyes, Maria Taylor, Johnathan Rice, Margot & the Nuclear So and So's, Jenny Lewis, The Breeders and The Elected.-Members:*Morgan Nagler...
— electric guitar
- Sing a Song For Them
- Jenny Lewis — main vocals, piano, triangle
- Barbara Gruska — drums
- Jason Lader — bass
- Ana Lenchantin — cello
- Paz Lenchantin — violin
- Blake Mills — electric guitar
- Wes Precourt — violin
- Johnathan Rice — acoustic guitar
- Jenny's Birthday Party Patrons — group vocals