Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley makes me act like an over-excited puppy.
Case in point: Upon meeting her following a show at Washington, D.C.'s Black Cat, I stuttered and acted like a complete fool as I asked her to sign a poster.
I never do that.
Then, a few weeks ago, I fought a bitter eBay war to procure an advance copy of Rilo Kiley's latest cd, "The Execution of All Things."
I never do that.
But it seems I'll do just about anything for Rilo Kiley, this sappy sweet team comprised of Jenny Lewis and Blake Sennett, the band's dual centerpieces, with Pierre de Reeder on bass and Jason Boesel on drums.
And, maybe I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure they'd do anything for me as well.
I can just tell. It's all right there in the lyrics, for example:
"Last night, where the road had started, and last night, when my hands were choking you. Last night, when the room and your mood was dipping, and last night when the ropes were pulling you in.... You said, "Hey, how could you love me this way?"
What you can't hear from reading that is the beautiful, angry way Lewis' voice stretches the word "hey" into approximately seven syllables. This one song, titled "Paint's Peeling", invites more rocking out than possibly anything else in Rilo Kiley's body of work — while catchy and melodic, nothing else of theirs has ever made me want to bang my head...until this song.
And that is a beautiful thing.
Then there's the rousing wake-up call of "A Better Son/Daughter", in which these lines
"your ship may be coming in you're weak but not giving in to the cries and the wails of the valley below"
bring to mind an inebriated scrum of sweaty, bloody soccer players hugging and drinking in a pub following their hard-fought season-ending loss.
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Article comments
1 - Beryl
Rilo Kiley is absolutely amazing. I saw them for the first time in my home town, Los Angeles. When Jenny and Blake came on stage, I nearly pissed my pants. Their energy flowed through every nook and cranny of the building and I could tell that their new lyrics filled everyone's hearts with a new sense of joy. I was expecting old classics such as Frug and Always, but all of their new shit was just as good and even more refined. I think that Rilo Kiley is growing up and are identifying more with their music which is something that can sometimes be hard to do. They sound very professional but still with that same homey twang. I love you Rilo!!
2 - Kevin Muir
did you guys know that jenny lewis was a child actress and was in "troop beverly hills" and "the wizard"?
just a fun fact.
3 - Mitch
Drove three hours to see Rilo Kiley last night in Columbia, and it was totally worth it. The only problem I have with Rilo Kiley is that they don't come east very often.
4 - Josh
Another interesting fact: Blake played "Pinskey" on Nickelodeon's "Salute Your Shorts" series.
5 - Josh
Another interesting fact: Blake played "Pinskey" on Nickelodeon's "Salute Your Shorts" series.
6 - jethr
enjoy blake sennett cola
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