Recorded at Sear Sound, New York, New York.

Personnel: Ben Kweller (vocals, guitar, harmonica, piano); Mike Stroud (vocals, guitar); Josh Lattanzi (vocals); John Kent, Fred Eltringham (drums); Ethan Johns (percussion).

Audio Mixer: Ethan Johns.

Recording information: Sear Sound Studios, New York, NY.

On his second major-label album, Ben Kweller continues with the off-the-cuff lyrical style and teenage-Lou Reed vocals that characterized his 2002 release, SHA SHA, but musically he's tightened the screws. Producer Ethan Johns (Ryan Adams, the Jayhawks) has given this focused set of songs an immediate sound and an ear-pleasing sparseness (effectively represented on the cover in a rural image of a purposeful Kweller surrounded by a trio of crouching wolves).

This time around, with the exception of the optimistic "Living Life" and reassuring closer "Different But the Same," piano has largely given way to sharp, driving guitar ("Ann Disaster"). While there's nothing as initially addictive as SHA SHA's best track, "Wasted & Ready," ON MY WAY exhibits a cohesiveness that the previous record lacked. At the age of 23, Kweller sounds well on his way to perfecting the fusion of classic-pop influences (such as Brian Wilson and Emitt Rhodes) with the alternative-rock sounds (Nirvana, the Lemonheads) that colored his teens.