I must point out that I have spent the past God knows how long trying to avoid The Jonas Brothers. I listen to both rock and pop and am a devoted fanatic of both genres from the 1960s onwards - for example I went to a Def Leppard concert and drove home listening to Herman's Hermits. I have no issues with pop. Or even manufactured pop. It was just *them*. They seemed a bit too nice and fake to actually make good music.

Then I actually heard them and, like the rest of the world before me, I fell in love with them. Not literally, you understand, I mean that's just wrong - I'm 25 for heaven's sake, they're all young enough to be my.... little brothers. Okay I admit Kevin has incredible hair and sideburns and he's terribly pretty. But that wasn't it. It was actually the music.

This album is a fantastic example of pure pop-rock. They have the sort of early Monkees vibe about them, before they got cynical and jaded. The writing, considering the bulk of it is done by a 15 year… more »

I must point out that I have spent the past God knows how long trying to avoid The Jonas Brothers. I listen to both rock and pop and am a devoted fanatic of both genres from the 1960s onwards - for example I went to a Def Leppard concert and drove home listening to Herman's Hermits. I have no issues with pop. Or even manufactured pop. It was just *them*. They seemed a bit too nice and fake to actually make good music.

Then I actually heard them and, like the rest of the world before me, I fell in love with them. Not literally, you understand, I mean that's just wrong - I'm 25 for heaven's sake, they're all young enough to be my.... little brothers. Okay I admit Kevin has incredible hair and sideburns and he's terribly pretty. But that wasn't it. It was actually the music.

This album is a fantastic example of pure pop-rock. They have the sort of early Monkees vibe about them, before they got cynical and jaded. The writing, considering the bulk of it is done by a 15 year old boy who was only 13 at the time, is surprisingly strong. The acknowledgement that during those early stages of hearbreak that 'an empty room can be so loud, there's too many tears to drown them out' in Hold On shows a tremendous depth of emotional insight for one so young.

The fiesty and sheer brilliance of That's Just The Way We Roll, a defiant statement of what the naysayers can do with their negativity, actually packs a harder punch than you'd think from these three cuddly-looking youngsters. Unquestionably, though, the highlight of the album is the incredible When You Look Me In The Eyes. I hate ballads, I hate this sort of song, but even *I* get goosebumps from listening to this. It is a simply beautiful song.

That's not to say the album is perfect. Hello Beautiful is a nauseating ballad that doesn't get better from the title on, Australia is a baffling song that seems to suggest that the women of Australia are the only ones guaranteed to remain faithful... and sometimes the songs do feel a little samey - but for an album that should, by all rights, be appalling - The Jonas Brothers' eponymous second album is surprisingly brilliant, and repeated listenings only serve to deepen the listener's appreciation.