©Matthew Rolston for RollingStone.com
Most of us have probably seen the Hollywood Records press release by now - the Jonases have hit #1 on the Billboard Top 200 album chart with Lines, Vines & Trying Times!
Billboard itself soon confirmed.
Not surprising, exactly, though it is unprecedented in that it is their second #1 within a 10 month period. It also debuted # 1 in Canada, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Central America. We don’t expect anything less of them!
Congratulations, guys!!!!
But somehow, in the rush of the world tour beginning, and an apparently soberly toned (note uberserious faces above*) Rolling Stone cover feature hitting stands shortly, this feels more like a reassuring affirmation than a moment to happydance in the streets - the show marches on (not to mention the extracurriculars)!
And of course, the win is not without its glitches, seeing as the album has opened to roughly half of A Little Bit Longer’s astounding opening last August, with 247,000 in sales this past week – still completely awesome, but if you’re neurotic (like me!) you know that this won’t go unnoticed…
Haters – gleeful doom and gloomers that they are – will probably make much of this, but I’ll choose to look at it as the natural part of a shift, rather than as some sort of stall. That’s been the mindset that a lot of the LVaTT media of the past week has been putting us in mind of, and as proof, I’m going to hit some highlights from the recent onslaught of album reviews, the glowing and the less-glowing, that intrigued me.
Join me after the jump!
*[and I also just loved this picture and needed to justify its use.]
There have been a range of reactions to Lines,Vines & Trying Times…it definitely seemed to challenge even the average, supportive critic. Songs panned by one critic were lovingly embraced by others who don’t like the ones the first one liked, and on and on. Previously turned-off music writers found themselves pulled in, while others found themselves yearning for Jonas sounds long since printed and shipped.
Altogether, the album reception has been somewhat convulsive…and I don’t necessarily think that reflects at all badly on LVaTT!
In the reviews, there were nuggets of wisdom and interest to be found on the songs, and on the Jonas Brothers in general. Here are some of the excerpts – in the spirit of appreciating constructive criticism even when it isn’t totally positive – that stuck to my ribs…see what you think!
The refreshing thing about “Lines” is the sense that the brothers have zero hang-ups about finding authenticity through traditional rock gestures. The Jonas’ have the advantage of a young fan base for whom Neil Diamond was never hokey and for whom soul has no political ramifications. So it feels natural when the trio skips from falsetto-stretching funk on “World War III” to rhinestone-cowboy country on “What Did I Do to Your Heart.” It’s a clean synopsis of the “I listen to everything” philosophy of today’s youth, and it’s in service of some worthy songwriting. – LA TIMES
Where A Little Bit Longer was built on a strong song foundation, Lines, Vines and Trying Times feels constructed from the outside in, with the concepts coming before the tunes, concepts that all take the Brothers Jonas further away from the fizzy, power pop fun. Lines is designed to showcase a mature Jonas Brothers, who wear their maturation in an increased stylistic range, and fussed-over arrangements that lend this a stiffness of a band well beyond their years. – AllMusic Guide
It may be mere coincidence that the best written of the songs tackle the most controversial subject. “Much Better” addresses Joe’s breakup with fellow teen star Taylor Swift, who never seems to stop talking in interviews about his alleged coldness. “I get a rep for breaking hearts,” Joe writes. “Now I’m done with all the superstars/and all the tears on her guitar.” (That last phrase echoes a Swift song title.) They also subversively reference Swift in the uber-catchy “What Did I Do to Your Heart” by aping her Nashville sound (with terrific results, it turns out).
…What really circumscribes the Jonas’ otherwise sweet appeal is the limitation of their writing. The Monkees made great records because they hired brilliant writers. The Jonas Brothers cut passable ones because they won’t. – NY DAILY NEWS
The Jo-Bros try a bit of everything here. Fly Away is soaring, breathy, escapist fantasy; Hey Baby is bouncy, horn-enhanced ’80s pop; What Did I Do to Your Heart is country-rock; Turn Right is an acoustic torch song (sung in quivering falsetto); and closer Keep It Real is a swinging Katrina and the Waves-styled dance number.
…There are still enough pop smarts to make the whole thing flow smoothly.
…But it’s hard to shake the feeling that this is a transition album – one that, hopefully, finds the brothers on the path to a less scattered, less derivative sound with an identity of its own. The Montreal Gazette
But it’s hard to fault the more endearing pop hooks here. The effervescent “Fly With Me” is bubblegum as Coldplay might have done it. “Poison Ivy” may, in fact, be catchier than poison ivy – with a chorus fit for Weezer. And Rick Springfield could have followed “Jessie’s Girl” to No. 1 with a hook as infectious as “Paranoid.”
…At their best, they’re a really good power-pop band with a talent for driving the little girls wild. And there’s no shame in that. AZ CENTRAL
Trotting out a relatively exotic title that hints of something beyond the bubblegum, the group seems to have gleaned at least one key lesson about boy-band life: Popularity alone won’t get you through the long haul.So give the threesome credit for aiming a little higher — even if they don’t always cleanly clear the bar.
…If you’re thirsting for art, you’ll probably need to wait for the existential reckoning that follows the group’s inevitable slip from the chart peaks. But at least Kevin, Joe and Nick are daring enough to browse a new musical wardrobe, and smart enough to grasp what’s ahead. DETROIT FREE PRESS
Soooo…
Some of these rough up the Boys more than others – but I still find them to be making fairly reasonable points, and important to consider.
Especially when held up against the type of critic who’ll call something a “pile of garbage” (this can be fully dismissed – he’s unqualified to review this album, in my opinion!) or litter their review with a few too many lame references to “Nutrasweet”, fuzzy bunnies and such to drive their ‘not-grown-up’ point home, I welcome the sort of criticism above, that actually seek to offer the straight talk of an objective listener.
Best of all, inherent in the constructive tone of a lot of these is often a real implication that the Boys will be sticking around. And for this new development, I am grateful.
But…what do you all think?
[And Bonus: Care to analyze this alternative Rolling Stone photo up top, anyone?! ...SharpLD? 
]
cpaig
mememoi
coolmom823
Cool.
It’s good to have it all in one place, and really points up the bi-polar nature of the responses to LVaTT. But I see this as cause for celebration.
When work is truly interesting – with depth and breadth – and has stretched the artists that created it, then by definition it can’t be received uniformly.
True, we are #1, with less units sold than last August. So be it, because I’m willing to bet that the buyers of LVaTT, unlike some buyers of ALBL, will still be listening to this CD in 2 or 3 years. I’ll take quality over quantity, because I’m a JB fan for the long haul.
so I enjoyed reading all of those snippets, thx mememoi…it’s funny how most of the critics are picking different songs as their favorite which I guess is kind of what the JBs intended, something for everyone.
I knew it would reach #1 and I think the way people buy music these days and in this economy it is an accomplishment. Some of these cds are hanging around on the charts selling only a few thousand copies.
And I don’t know if the timing has anything to do with sales but I’m so happy that I get the cd before the tour unlike last year when it came out after we saw them.
I do wish they would do Hey Baby and Don’t Speak (and I can’t remember if they do or not?) live instead of Year 3000 or anything from Camp Rock-but I know I’ll feel differently when I see the concert.
I love, love the picture!!! It would also have made an awesome cover. Kevin looks sort of dark and a tiny bit angry and so does Joe and there’s Nick all smiley. Just great
Yeah…I loved the whole concert but there were some songs I would have swapped out for “deep cuts” – stuff from the first three, or especially last two, albums that don’t get trotted out much that I LOVE. Year 3000 is fun but I’d die if they played, like, Inseparable.
But I understand that they want to play as much that the general audience will enjoy as they can, and that means stuff from Camp Rock & such. I love all the songs, and love to see them perform anything, but in that sense I might agree a little with the Viva la Mainstream blog dude, whose opinion I found just fascinating – there is an aspect to the family element that restricts them.
Overall though, I like that they are band for the whole family.
I agree- I’m torn about the songs chosen for the world tour. I love hearing them play and I’ll take anything but I honestly thought they would swap out the Camp Rock songs for songs from their new album.
And mememoi, I would also DIE if they played Inseparable. Or even Got me Going Crazy from ALBL. Or Please Be Mine. *sigh*
I would love to see them play GMGC!! I would die… Love that song so much.
And from LVaTT, Hey Baby… It would be so amazing live! And Don’t Speak is pretty much my favourite song write now, so that would be incredible too… But of course I love all their songs.
Can’t believe I just wrote “write now”. LOL! “Right now” is what I meant, obviously.
Thank you for putting all of this together mememoi! It was hard to keep up with all of the reviews- they were all over the spectrum. You’ve picked the best parts from the best ones.
I also thought it was interesting that it sold less in its first week than ALBL. But didn’t ALBL drop off the charts quickly? As in, their core fans bought it when it came out but that was pretty much it? I see this album having some longevity on the charts- at least that’s what I hope to see.
From your mouth to the charts, please!
I still believe that like 9 times out of 10, there is an inverse relationship between musical quality and chart success.
But may the Jonas Brothers continue to be the anomaly!
My favorite right now is “What Did I Do to Your Heart.” I love the lyrics and the music and the country feel and well, everything! I love WWIII and Much Better also. And Keeping It Real to be honest.
I’m usually the only one not picking the slower songs as my favorites. I guess my pop music taste is a bit plebian LOL. I do love all the songs though since they are all the Jonas Brothers’ “babies.” Plus they never have any song without an awesome part in it just for me.