Jenny Lewis @ QMU, 18 Oct

Her diminutive form weaves awkwardly among her band like a newborn deer, but Jenny Lewis’s solo efforts away from Rilo Kiley have a bluesy, brassy solidity that bolster her on stage. Her doe-eyed innocence is undercut by her hard-edged lyrics, and the combination is irresistible; the audience at the Queen Margaret Union is enraptured. But the real star of this show is her voice: Lewis’s vocals are ethereally pragmatic. Her vibrato echoes effortlessly during the title track of her new album Acid Tongue, with her band standing in as back-up choir. She oscillates between stomping, Southern-style numbers like The Big Guns and heart-wrenchingly gorgeous ballads, exemplified by a quiet duet of Love Hurts with band-mate and boyfriend Jonathan Rice. The crowd calls out encouragement which is always received with a demure smile and lowered eyes, and everything is done with such ‘who me?’ cuteness that Lewis could melt even the crustiest heart. [Marta Nelson]