One year after their fairly successful debut record, It's About Time, the Jonas Brothers are ready to drop their new sophomore attempt with the help of a new label from Hollywood Records, a company that has produced big teen artists such as Raven Symone and Plain White T's. Their new self-titled album is straight forward and simple proof that these three brothers have matured in every aspect of their music career, and, most notably, in their voices. Interestingly, heavier guitar parts give this album an edgier feel previously not heard. But does this mean a discontinuation of the fun and positive tracks from It's About Time?

"S.O.S," the album's opener, finds the group in the midst of an up and down relationship which they compare to "walking on broken glass." The following track and first hit single from the record, "Hold On," boasts a strong reminder not to completely fall apart in troubled times and holds values in high esteem (Don't give up/Have faith/Restart). The surprising ballad "Hello Beautiful" will no doubt leave fans pleased not only with the song itself, but also with the vocal quality and improvement that has taken place within one year's time. "Inseparable" bears a message of being there for each other no matter what the circumstances are, whereas "Hollywood" is the song on this album that proves it worthy of a 3-star rating. The track lets fans know that this band won't be swayed by Hollywood culture and tells us "the fire's in our hearts."

What and where is that fire though? While it appears most obvious in "Hollywood" that it is Christ's love, it is not so apparent throughout this record. Many songs make it hard to decipher whether they have a faith-based or secular meaning which unfortunately is likely to leave some confused and in the dark.

Overall, though, the Jonas Brothers have maintained their image as a solid choice of music for teens due to this mix of fun, up-tempo, and (mostly) positive songs. Their potential to grow as artists of faith is at its highest level yet, but at least for now, they still seem willing to fill the musical appetite of the Radio Disney crowd only. We can only hope that one day that will change.

- Review date: 8/4/07, written by Logan Leasure