Boyband reunions are less than spectacularly unexpected at this point- we’ve been here for Backstreet 2.0, Simple Plan’s No Pad’s, No Helmets…Just Balls 15th anniversary tour, and I’m pretty sure Boyz II Men are putting on something special in Vegas for their long-time fans. Even apart from the boyband craze, reunions seem to be the “thing” now-a-days: Fuller House is back and cornier than ever (#FreeAuntBecky), and All That is making a comeback that ten-year-old me is internally screaming about. But in the midst of all of these reunions and revivals the Jonas Brothers comeback is the one that brought almost 325,000,000 fans to a life-halt with the release of their first single in 10 years, “Sucker,” just three months ago.
The release of Sucker, paired with a music video more iconic than the release of the song itself, was used as good old fan-bait; not to say it wasn’t great. Featuring all three Jonas sisters, over-the-top outfits, tea sets, and bathtubs in empty acres of land, how could you not watch it over at least seven times?? Although mixed about the new sound of the famous brothers at first, I found myself singing the song in Ubers and praying that it would come on at late nights in Fenway or at Tavern in the Square, where all that good pop junk was always played. I loved the Sucker music video. Then I liked the song. Then I loved the song. Then I was desperately refreshing my New Music Friday the night before the release of the second single, “Cool.”
“Cool” was just that- it was cool (shrug) for lack of a better word. “Cool” is a chill summer song that makes me want to sip on a Twee and float around in a pool on one of those big, blow-up pink flamingos. With a shout-it-out-loud chorus, the second single accomplished what it needed to. It bridged the gap between “Sucker” and the anticipated release of the full album, Happiness Begins.
The album has obvious highs and lows, but never totally loses even the most loyal of old Jonas Brothers fans (@me). Happiness Begins is easy to harshly judge because their old stuff was teenage gold, but at the same time is easy to love because of the break up every girl in America took personally in 2013.
Today, Friday, June 7th, seeing that new, bright album cover pop up on the Jonas Brothers’ Spotify page made my heart jump around in my chest a little bit. Being right in that sweet spot age growing up, the Jonas Brothers were a big part of my musical life. They were just a tad older than me, causing me to vulnerably trust every word they sang. Jammin’ with the Jonas Brothers: An Unauthorized Biography was the first music biography book I ever read in 2008. They were the first concert I sat front row for. Kevin’s A Little Bit Longer guitar solo was the first non-Beatles guitar solo I ever picked up. They were easily lovable, obviously talented, and rip-my-Aeropostale-shirt-off-me attractive.
Introducing the new album was Sucker, as song number one, followed by Cool. Next up, “Only Human,” also the third song on this week’s New Music Friday, has an extremely catchy beat, bringing me back to the distant reggae sound that the group tried out in “6 Minutes,” one of their later songs on their first album, It’s About Time. Lyrically simple and easy to dance to, this song is a guaranteed fan-fave.
The Brothers slow it down a bit with their fourth song, “I Believe,” a love song from Nick to wife Priyanka Chopra. Yeah, it’s cute and all, but we’re now a quarter of the way through the album and I am yet to be blown away. Of course, no one will overlook it because of the passion of one of pops favorite couples at the moment, but musically the song remains flat and empty.
“Used To Be” caught me off guard, with its smooth beat and those rich Jonas Brothers harmonies that make me melt, bringing together a new Jonas-Pop sound. This song will keep them neck and neck with pop competitors, feeling almost Post Malone-esk. You can really hear the collaboration and compromise in solo sounds in this song, with a simple and dreamy melody carried by Nick, and that slight funk feel of Joe’s DNCE.
“Every Single Time,” got old my second listen-through. Another island vibe, which is fun and all but there’s no growth, no feeling, and no Kevin?? Enough with the beats bros., give me a shredding Kevin Guitar solo! Is that too much to request?
“Don’t Throw it Away,” propels the brothers forward past their Disney days. One of the strongest songs on the album both lyrically and melodically, this makes me feel nostalgic for those 2006 brothers who didn’t know what was coming, and proud of these 2019 brothers who worked through their issues to bring us a heartfelt back-together song that might actually be about the band reuniting. Staying close to the simple style and summer sound of the album, this song is not surprisingly different, but the vibe is more serious and respectable.
The album had a few more flops for me, like “Love Her” and “Hesitate,” but those flops are few and far between. Hidden between bops like “Happy When I’m Sad” and “Trust,” the so-so songs are easy to overlook.
The album ends on a note so good I restarted the album over again. The classic Joe runs in “Rollercoaster” makes me a special kind of Jonas-giddy, and the closing song “Comeback” is the perfect end to the album we’ve been waiting for for ten years.
Although hard for us to forget at this point that the Brothers were apart for 10 years, it’s also hard to process that these are not the same teenage brothers we became so attached to in the early 2000s. It’s unfair to compare them to even their most recent album before this one, Lines, Vines, and Trying Times- would you want to be remembered as the person you were 10 years ago?