Jewel Kilcher has definitely made a decided return to her folk rock roots.
With the release of her first single "Standing Still" off her latest album, This Way, Jewel has come back from a two-year hiatus to show she still has her mojo.
With the collection of folk rock and sometimes even bluesy songs, This Way shows Jewel's growth from the folk/pop political message princess on Pieces of You, her debut record that shot her to stardom, and the strangely hypnotizing, folksy, do-good and hope-filled Spirit. She is now a musician who has landed on some middle ground with This Way.
A co-producer on the new album, Jewel recorded the album in country music boomtown Nashville, although the trademark country influence of the city leaves few marks on the album.
Her songs include straight-up homage to folk goddesses such as Joan Baez with songs such as "Jesus Loves You," "Love Me, Just Leave Me Alone" and "The New Wild West." She does tip her hat to country music with the song "Everybody Needs Someone Sometime," a Dixie Chick-esque tune that only deals with a bit more daring subject matter than most country songs. The album also contains two live tracks, "Grey Matter" and "Sometimes It Be That Way," which are kickbacks to Pieces of You and actually sound like they could have been on her debut album.
This Way is a record that sends out a much more toned down political message, something that Jewel banked much of her music on for her last two albums. Pieces of You and Spirit were hard-hitting albums condemning injustice with some stunningly beautiful songs. This Way matches those melodies with songs such as "I Won't Walk Away," but she doesn't seem to use her medium as a way to express her deeply imbedded political and personal problems or her spirituality. Jewel has begun her trek to a pop-rock goddess reputation in an industry that spits out beauty divas such as Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, while true artists such as Sheryl Crow and Tori Amos are left to their own devices.
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Jewel, a singer-songwriter who achieved her fame by relentless touring - like most rock bands, never forgets the people who made her a success. She leaves a note to her fans in the liner notes that states, "Well, it's been a while since my last record. At the end of touring Spirit, I was a worn-out little chick singer. I vowed to go back to the woods to hole up, sleep and write songs. The time off went a long way in refueling my love of songwriting and music. By the time I made This Way, I finally felt like I had the desire to tackle making a record, and to push myself in my writing and music."
She said during an interview on her official Web site, www.jeweljk.com, that with her new album, she has "learned to insist on pacing myself better; valuing the fact that for my art and writing I need to be able to get outdoors, amongst the open spaces that I relied upon in my youth.
"The other part is that I renewed a commitment to artistry and craft and songwriting, and to make each decision in my career in a way that nurtures those ideals, rather than trying simply to manufacture a song just for the sake of it being a hit."
In an industry that does exactly that, it's nice to see somebody at least trying to get away from it. This Way is a wonderful attempt by Jewel, one that eclipses her last album, but still can't reach the musically epic proportions of Pieces of You. Still, finding a more solid footing in her maturity as an artist, Jewel shows promise. For now, her latest album can soothe a little bit of the yearning for what Jewel could honestly have in store for us down the line.
