Album Review: Greetings From Your Hometown by The Jonas Brothers

Last week, the Iconic brothers that we all know and love, the Jonas Brothers released their seventh studio album, “Greetings From Your Hometown”! This time is sure to be nostalgic for us all as we celebrate their twentieth anniversary around this time too!  Here’s our song-by-song breakdown and their album so you can listen too!

I Can’t Lose

As a groovy start to an LP, the first song, titled I Can’t Lose, serves to be a catchy upbeat tune. Joe Jonas starts this song to join in with Nick on the chorus. They talk about how in even a bad situation that with love it can still be great. With the opening lyric being “I woke up late/missed the alarm/can’t find the keys to my car.” They visualise a bad start to a day, but when the chorus comes in with “I can’t lose when I’m with you/you give me everything, everything that I need/everything I need to keep smiling through” We realise that the song is actually about how love makes a bad day feel better and change how you feel. With a catchy drumbeat and keyboards for a sound as uplifting as the lyrics, that is I Can’t Lose

Tables

The nostalgic turn on this album, Tables is about experiences that the brothers shared when they were younger.  This track shows that above all they are there together and brothers and nothing can stop that. The first time and the third time the lyric “You know we can flip the script right now/we can laugh at everything that’s bringing us down/baby, we can turn the tables around” is said, we can interpret a different meaning, while the first time stands for not expecting change when doing something, the third time represents changing a situation or perspective on purpose to change it. (this lyric may also be a reference to a 2008 video from “Your Daily Dose of Jonas”). This track uses various different percussion instruments to create yet again a sound that’s bound to get stuck in your head.

Love Me To Heaven

Now to the lead single titled Love Me To Heaven, starting with an already different sound. When Nick starts to sing, we can tell this song already has a different feel. This track makes you feel like you’re hearing a love song straight out of their hearts.  This track talks about how love is unable to be beat, and that nothing is better. This song sounds like dancing in the rain, or the scene right before the credits of your favourite romance movie. The lyric “Turns out the northern lights don't impress me much/Guess I’m just a fool for the human touch/I could be down, but you love me to heaven” Shows that love is nothing in comparison to a beautiful view. It shows that love is beautiful. Speaking of beautiful, the use of synths in this track adds to the beauty and makes this song another iconic track.

No Time To Talk

Now a classic throwback to the 70s disco era, the Jonas Brothers sampled the Bee Gee’s iconic hit Stayin’ Alive, The brothers use this to create a new song, while keeping the classic tune, they also add their own lyrics and sound to create yet another hit. Based on both the title of the album and the era of music they chose to sample from, we can assume that this song is them going back in time to what they listened to growing up. With the fun and free tune and lyrics about dancing and being free, this song is a certified summer hit.

Backwards

Backwards is a complete change from the last track we heard, with the lyric “Say I’m movin’ on, but I keep going backwards” This song is a heartbroken track, about the end of a relationship, This song is very open and vulnerable, with the brothers talking about missing the person and that they are trying to figure out where everything went wrong, but can’t, they just miss the person. Anyone who’s been through heartbreak is sure to know the feeling.

Loved You Better

Continuing the album we have a ballad, Loved You Better is yet another tear-jerker. As the first feature (Dean Lewis) starts the song with powerful, gut-wrenching vocals and a slow drumbeat, this track is the definition of hurt. The lyrics serve to be about regret and penitence. Not just is this song like twisting the knife, it has hints of not having self-love, we hear the lyric “I shoulda loved you better/But I couldn’t even love myself” This lyric is heart-breaking, it allows us to see that not only is this about the loss of someone due to their own actions, it's also about not even loving yourself, causing the inevitable end of the relationship.

Greetings From Your Hometown

Next on this LP would be Greetings From Your Hometown, this track features Switchfoot and is the title track of this album and another look into the brains of the Jonas Brothers. This track is a reflection on growing up and seeing it from a different perspective, the lyrics “..leave this town and make our way to the city/And bail this town/Ain’t it strange how the perspective changes?/I finally appreciate this place and I crave it” is about how when you’re younger you want to leave your hometown, but now that you’ve grown older you miss it and crave to be back. It shows that as you get older, you go back to your roots, which is what makes this a perfect title track.

When You Know

When You Know is a track all about the time slipping away from you, along with a sense of regret, When You Know is an overall relatable track about finding the one and the feeling it can bring you. While overall a sad track, this also serves as a beacon of hope, like a light in the dark and love. It’s a beautiful sentiment. The use of acoustic guitar and piano applies sounds that we associate with this kind of song.

Heat Of The Moment

Heat Of The Moment is a sort of romantic song. Within this track, the Jonas Brothers use certain lyrics like “Tried my best to play it cool/But cool don’t seem to work on you” to speak about how whenever you become vulnerable. This track takes a deep dive into the feeling of strong love, along with the feeling of fear when you start to love someone, a fear of vulnerability, but still in love. This track incorporates different synths to create a perfect mix.

Bully

This track goes into the feeling of manipulation, the use of the word “bully” isn’t standing for the typical mean bully. This track is all about how the feeling of manipulation can sometimes be exciting and enticing. Bully is all about giving yourself to your partner in a dangerous and alluring relationship. The toxic lyrics of manipulation in this track is the complete opposite of the song itself, this track is an up-beat catchy tune, mixing emotional lyrics with a pop song.

Waste No Time

With a Jonas Brothers staple pop-rock sound and yet another up-beat melody, Waste No Time serves to be a song about how love is worth fighting for. While this song dives into the concept of fights and conflicts in a relationship, in the end this track is about fighting for what’s important. Love.

Lucky

Another track for the ones who are struggling. This song has lyrics like “Live everyday like it might be your last” and “Flowers can’t grow in the dark” This song is the embodiment of living life to its fullest potential. This song is about having strength and perseverance to make your bad times better. An amazing message sits in the lyrics of this song.

Mirror To The Sky

This song on the surface level is your typical love song, but if you just listen to the lyrics you’ll come to realise that this song is about wonder and just how beautiful love is. Mirror To The Sky uses metaphors comparing the likes of a relationship to the beauty of the universe. The vocal performance in this track is a testament to the Jonas Brothers name.

Slow Motion

Slow Motion features Marshmallow to create the last track, that just makes you want to get up and dance. Slow Motion is about wanting to take a relationship slow and savour every moment. This track represents the idea that love builds over time and strengthens. The lyric “I’ma take my foot up off the gas” proves this, the track uses this metaphor to represent taking it slow. This track is perfect for the ending track.

In the end, this track goes full circle, hitting every topic from A-Z, and representing the important things. Starting with love songs and nostalgia based tunes, to heartbreak and regret, and back to love, Greetings From Your Hometown is just the perfect album for any emotion, and it proves the talent of the Jonas Brothers. This album is sure to win awards and go far. The Jonas20: Greetings from Your Hometown tour began just a few days ago, and is sure to leave fans amazed. Iconic bands like The All-American Rejects, and Boys Like Girls as the opening artists are sure to bring fans on a trip down memory lane. Happy 20th Anniversary to the brothers, and Happy listening to you!