You might not have heard of Disney’s newest poptart, Demi Lovato. Somehow, she has managed to climb the Billboard charts and snag roles in Disney Channel originals without a nude photo scandal, an underwear model boyfriend, or a song about sneakers (Ecko red, anyone?). On her sophomore album, Here We Go Again, Lovato shows that while she still has some growing up to do, she can really sing.

The album’s opener and first single, “Here We Go Again,” is a jumpy teen pop anthem about how guys are so complicated (“You never know what you want/ and you never say what you mean”). “Here We Go Again” is reminiscient of Miley Cyrus’ smash hit “See You Again,” the song that no one wanted to admit we were all listening to. But most of Lovato’s tunes do not evoke comparison to Cyrus–Demi Lovato’s songs are age-appropriate and just edgy enough to appeal to middle schoolers who want to rebel but still need to wear the same shoes as their friends.

And right away, Lovato proves that she can actually sing. Yes, her lyrics are consistently cheesy. Yes, the musicianship leaves something to be desired. But this girl’s got a set of pipes, and she knows how to use it.

“U Got Nothin’ On Me” is guitar-driven faux-stadium rock, and sounds like someone hired cheerleaders to be Lovato’s backup singers. That aside, however, she’s got the girl-power thing down.

Tweens fell in love with Demi Lovato in the Disney Channel original movie “Camp Rock.” Currently, the 16-year-old stars in the Disney Channel original series “Sonny With A Chance.” According to Lovato, however, acting is just a hobby and music is her true passion. It doesn’t hurt that she’s toured with Miley Cyrus and the Jonas Brothers. (She’s also rumored to have briefly dated Cyrus’s brother, Trace.)

Here We Go Again includes a few slow love songs with boring, repetitive melodies, but Lovato’s voice still shines despite the lack of creativity.

She rocks out on “Quiet,” and expresses her feelings without sounding overwhelmingly angsty. “Catch Me” shows off her vocal range and control instead of her power.

The bombastic “Got Dynamite” is as close as Lovato gets to seduction and sex appeal. With explosive percussion, distorted guitars, and even more girl power, it’s also about as close as Disney gets to rock ‘n roll.

On Here We Go Again, Lovato also experiments briefly with piano ballads and more reserved sounds. In between her big, electric pop rock songs, she’s got a few tracks with some country twang, and the variety does not work in her favor.

The album feels disjointed, as if Lovato desperately wants to solidify her signature sound, but just can’t figure out what that sound should be. She’s obviously versatile, but with 14 tracks, she could stand to lose a few. The pop anthems on the album pack the punch, and everything else just brings it down. For now, Lovato should stick with the loud, girly anthems and leave the singer-songwriter thing to the pros.

That being said, it’s important to take this album for what it is–Demi Lovato doesn’t have a college audience, and she probably never will. Her songs are aimed at young girls who are just starting to purchase and download music and who need a cool, respectable teen role model. They don’t care if her guitar riffs are original. And for that audience, Lovato is perfect. If I was 11, I could listen to Here We Go Again on repeat until the next Jonas Brothers album came out.

So Here We Go Again is the perfect album to listen to with your little sister–she’ll love it, and you’ll be able to tolerate it without wanting to rip out your hair.

2 1/2 stars out of 5.