For her first solo endeavor outside LA alt-rock band Rilo Kiley, Jenny Lewis has created an intimate, acoustic-based album that flirts with a few roots traditions but doesn’t stray far from the melodic, acerbic pop songwriting she’s known for. There are tinges of gospel in the vocal harmonies (provided by the delightful Leigh and Chandra Watson) and God is mentioned numerous times, but Lewis’ point of view has little to do with mainstream religion: “In the desert underneath the charging sky / It’s just you and God / But what if God’s not there? / But his name is on your dollar bill / Which just became cab fare” (from “The Charging Sky”). Her lyrics often read like journal entries—wry, pointed comments on cosmetic surgery, AIDS, adultery, “destructive appetites,” political polarization, romantic betrayal—and while they sometimes refuse to scan with any kind of rhythmic sense, they’re always tied to strong, hummable melodies. Since Lewis never takes herself too seriously, her potentially “too-personal” lyrics become charming and funny, filled with colorful specifics (“her father was in cuff links with slicked-back black hair,” from the title song). The spare arrangements—acoustic and electric guitars, a bare-bones rhythm section, subliminal keyboards—flirt with ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s pop and country but remain stubbornly contemporary, the perfect cradle for Lewis’ flexible, expressive voice, which can be girlish and breathy or soar with radio-ready pop power. Lewis’ oeuvre may be best expressed in the vaguely Hawaiian-sounding “Happy,” in which the chorus repeats the title numerous times, allowing you to forget that the line actually started with the words “I could be . . .”. (Team Love, www.team-love.com)