Jen the Trend Setter

I didn't realize Jen was so wired into popular culture until I read this article in the Washington Post, our old hometown newspaper. It lists the top 10 music CDs of 2006. Here's the key selection:

9. Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins, "Rabbit Fur Coat"

Lewis is considered indie-rock royalty for her roles in Rilo Kiley and Postal Service, but she transformed herself into something else entirely here: a beguiling country-soul chanteuse. Gospelly, deliciously twangy and even a little bit torchy, the album is loaded with conversational, bittersweet songs that echo Loretta Lynn, Laura Nyro and Patsy Cline. The evocative tracks have a certain intimacy that Rilo Kiley's songs often lack, as Lewis sings of heartbreak, spirituality and family dysfunction in a crystalline alto. Though the co-billed Watson sisters provide harmony vocals, this is very much a solo album: Lewis plays guitar, sings lead and wrote all of the songs, save for a Traveling Wilburys cover. All hail the new queen of rapture.

And Laura and I had the good sense to select it for her. Of course, it was the only CD she asked for that was actually in stock.

But still.