I was channel surfing late one Saturday evening and found nothing of interest on 200 satellite channels.  Out of desperation, I switched over to the local public TV stations.  "Ah ha," I gasped, "Austin City Limits is on."

A young 4 piece outfit was banging away in a way that is quite atypical for the station.  They went from Violent Femmes inspired punk to introspective pop rock in a way that had me wondering who the heck they were and how quick could I get my hands on their CD.

It turns out that the band belonged to Texas native Ben Kweller, a wunderkind guitarist/piano playing songwriter who's won some notable songwriting competitions.   Kweller is a scrawny young fellow who looks as if he'd blow away in a stiff wind.  But sometimes little guys play much bigger than they are, and when Kweller straps on his guitar he grows a few inches.

The music on his new release, On My Way,  features clever yet simple pop/rock arrangements, with electric and acoustic guitars in the forefront.  Some of the songs are absolute stompers ("The Rules" and "I Need You Back").  Others are more subtle pop ("My Apartment," and "Hospital Bed") that wouldn't be out of place on an old Kinks album.  Acoustic solo tracks like "On My Way" are a pleasant shift from the rockers, and keep the songs from sounding too similar.  "Down" indicates that Kweller might be a fan of Sloan, as he drives guitars, vocals, and attitude into  power pop nirvana.

The album stunner is "Hear Me Out," as it opens with a simple harmonica melody and Weezeresque vocal melody.  Suddenly the chorus of "Her Me Out" is repeated, forcing the listener to reply with an upward twist of the volume knob.