Like it or not, Lindsay Lohan's voice is once more gracing airwaves nationwide. In the days leading up to the release of A Little More Personal (Raw), the air has been filled with shrill yelps of excitement, mixed with groans of skepticism. Since her transition from acting to singing, Lohan has lost some of her credibility — the flip-flop many actresses and singers make happens fairly often in Hollywood.

A long way from her "Parent Trap" days, it is pretty clear Lohan is attempting to distance herself from her Disney image. Although most might say she did that a while ago, the cover of her album is another perfect example. Wearing "barely" anything, the cover picture is sure to be on the walls and ceilings of many a dorm room in the near future. Who knew being a "nice girl" was a bad thing?

So, whose expectations does Lohan live up to? To those skeptics out there, it may come as a shock to hear that despite the new image, Lohan's music is not half bad. In fact, when compared to her archrival Hilary Duff's whiny voice, hers actually sounds quite good.

Lindsay Lohan's new album A Little More Personal (Raw) also shows a slight change in tone from her first album Speak, which came out a year ago. Despite its label of "pop/rock," some of her songs on the album have been described as moody, and aside from the covers, this is a relatively accurate description.

Since one Avril Lavigne is plenty, listeners will be relieved that Lohan, thankfully, does not take her music to that extreme. Her sound is refreshing and different from the music usually produced by artists as young as she is, whether it be the girly Hilary Duff or the wannabe punk Ashlee Simpson — which is surprising, considering one of her core writers, Kara DioGuardi, has also worked with both of these girls.

Maybe it is because Lindsay's songs don't focus on feuds or ex-boyfriends. Two songs, in particular, address issues the artist has with her dad, who has recently been in the news for assaulting a sanitation worker in New York. The CD starts out with "Confessions of a Broken Heart (Daughter to Father)" in which Lindsay voices the heartache her father has caused her. This song has already become quite popular as a result of its gripping, powerful video. Lindsay's sentiments are expressed further in "My Innocence," with lyrics insinuating her father's part in its loss.

Although her voice has a unique side to it and the body of her album is appealing, Lindsay's songs tend to take the shape of many of her contemporaries as well as some more seasoned artists. Lohan's first album emitted sounds similar to the Simpsons and good old J. Lo. In A Little More Personal, however, her inspirations lean more toward Kelly Clarkson, a little Sheryl Crow and even the Cars. Her lyrics do set her apart in that respect and songs like "Black Hole" and "Fastlane" (no relation to "Herbie") could find a welcome home with listeners.

As with any artist, Lohan makes the poor choice of trying her hand at a couple of cover tunes — the despicable cop-out to actually writing one's own music. The first is a mediocre remake of Cheap Trick's "I Want You to Want Me." It just does not compare to the original, or its subsequent remakes. The other is a catchy and well-done cover of Stevie Nicks' "Edge of Seventeen," and anyone who liked the original will enjoy this one.

Lohan's new CD will surprise people who have not previously listened to her music, and fans of the singer will be not be disappointed. However, this will hopefully not be the epitome of Lindsay Lohan's music career. To maintain or increase her success, she will need to continue to develop her skills — churning out a new CD every year just may not be the best way to go.

Grade: B