Lines, Vines and Trying Times

On their fourth release in as many years, the boys don't entirely topple their Tiger Beat pedestal, but with Lines' PG-13 sentiments and wailing guitars, they try hard to leave their tween-dream innocence behind.

Although the tunes are accomplished, Lines has a patina of smarm that's less smart than the music.

The boys continue to expand musically, making this their kickiest and catchiest CD yet, even better than last year's A Little Bit Longer.

Lines suggests that the Jonas Brothers simply don't have--or, more charitably, haven't yet developed--the chops to make it once the current teen-pop bubble bursts.

In a number of 'mature' developments to their sound they've laid down impeccably produced horns (see bombastic opener 'World War III'), come within millimetres of salacious classic rock in the excellent "Poison Ivy" (watch out for the implied "bitch" in the chorus!) and, on lead single 'Paranoid,' dispensed a chilled-out post-baggy number.

It’s a bricolage of genres, so bent on embracing a variety of musical forms that it sometimes borders on parody.

If the Jonases come up woefully short in the sensitivity department, they (nearly) make up for it with songwriting that's far more flavorful than that on Fearless or on the JoBros' previous disc, last year's "A Little Bit Longer."

Lines, Vines and Trying Times isn’t a good record and definitely isn’t the kind of thing you should be looking to investigate further. But if you’re reading this review, the chances are it’s not meant for you, so giving it a thumbs-down is hardly earth-shattering news.

While it's commendable for the trio to try to break out of its teen dream box, it's on songs like 'Before the Storm'--featuring Miley Cyrus--where the brothers prove they're still among the best at putting the fizz in pop culture.