Jenny Lewis with The Watson Twins - 'Rabbit Fur Coat' (Rough Trade) Released 23/01/06

Aside from the title; fur, even dressed in nostalgic references to your dead mother's favorite over kill, sorry coat , is not cool (she's not really dead... as far as I know); the album's filled with promise and a couple of some what handsomely known friends: Bright Eye's' Conor Oberst, and Postal Service/Death Cab For Cutie's Ben Gibbard. Jenny Lewis, Rilo Kiley's front-woman, simply glows in this, her album debut. "I could be happy" listening to this wonderful modern twist on gospel, country, folk and not run like the devil ('Run Devil Run') does from love. For the love of the music! She's into peace too in 'Big Guns', no she's not being ironic but she's "still angry". There's clapping, and finger picking guitars decorating the harmonies of these American angels; Jenny's joined by The Watson Twins. You wouldn't be blamed for imagining 'Happy' being played in a big old church, and the acoustic throughout is bound to 'Melt You Heart'. Jenny's voice is as smooth and southern scented as Kim Basinger's at the end of a good, hard working day.

Naturally 'Rabbit Fur Coat' is the most exciting piece in this costume stuffed wardrobe; the true knowing heart of a young talent who spends way too much time writing in LA. She sings against a simple string backdrop, the song of her mother who fell "in love with mister so and so, he invited me in, i'm a girl no more", and how she became the "hundred thousand dollar kid" who lived in a mansion house. Of course there was much suffering and mix up in the families and fortunes. There's essence of Lynch's Twin Peaks here and there, though generally swinging on the saner side of strange. If you follow the instructions: 'Handle With Care'; things will be okay, after all "everybody got somebody to lean on, put your body next to mine and lean on". The aforementioned boys from bands are very sweet here, and very tired of being lonely. This album is by no means pathetically in love with itself, nor lost its mind in the love of God, but rather by influence, "works in mysterious ways". There's sense of hope and longing in and around 'Born Secular', and no one's going to be surprised if you end up, like so many will, a follower.