Writer's Note: In honor of actress and singer Zooey Deschanel's birthday, here's a review I did of She & Him's second album. It was originally published on March 28th, 2010 in UAB's Kaleidoscope.
The cut-out bins of America are littered with the corpses of musical efforts by actors-turned-singers, and the results have rarely been pretty. Think Eddie Murphy, Bruce Willis, even (shudder) William Shatner. More recently, actress Scarlett Johansson delivered a snooze-inducing cover album consisting of Tom Waits covers, which isn’t as bad as it sounds, but it was no great shakes, either.
When word arrived that revered indie film actress Zooey Deschanel (“All the Real Girls”) was joining the fray, one can’t blame everyone for raising an eyebrow in anticipation of yet another train wreck. Sure, every now and then someone gets off a good one. Former child/teen star Jenny Lewis (“Foxfire”), for instance, has achieved far more success as a singer for indie act Rilo Kiley and a solo performer than she ever did as an actress. Such examples are far and few in between, however.
So, you can imagine everyone’s surprise when Deschanel’s debut, a team-up between her and indie rocker M. Ward, entitled "She & Him, Volume One," turned out to not suck. In fact, it was pretty darned good, running the gamut from Patsy Cline-ish country songs to 60's Girl Group pastiches to, God help us all, a bona fide old-timey spiritual (“Swing Low Sweet Chariot,” of all things).
It sounded like a disaster on paper, but damned if it didn’t do quite well, clocking in on the Billboard Hot 100 charts at a respectable 71. Paste magazine, a bastion of hipster cred, also went on to dub the band’s optimistically-titled “Volume One,” Album of the Year in 2008.
Since then, both artists’ careers have taken off, with Ward having released two well-received albums since, the solo “Hold Time” (which featured two collaborations with Deschanel) and as one part of an indie super-group, the cheekily-monikered “Monsters of Folk,” also featuring Jim James of My Morning Jacket and Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis of Bright Eyes.
Meanwhile, Deschanel’s movie career has gone into overdrive, with featured roles in both big-budget affairs like “Yes Man” (with Jim Carrey) and smaller independent flicks like the critical favorite “(500) Days of Summer,” which featured a lovely cover of the Smiths’ classic “Please Please Let Me Get What I Want” by She & Him.
The winsome twosome is back again with “Volume Two,” and I’m happy to say the results are every bit as endearing the second time around, if not more so. While the first album (which was recorded in all of three days) sounded a bit off-the-cuff, with some songs sounding determinedly lo-fi, if not flat-out like they were recorded in a closet; this is a far more polished affair with soaring melodies and layered vocals.
The band also goes easier on the covers this time, with only two this time around, compared to the first album’s four. (Respectively, the covers are of NRBQ’s “Ridin’ in my Car” and Patience and Prudence’s “Gonna Get Along Without You Now.”)
Despite the more refined production by Ward (who also produced the first volume), the album is every bit as much a cotton candy confection as the first album, with Deschanel writing all of the tracks herself, save the aforementioned covers. Indie pop group Tilly and the Well pop up on “In The Sun,” the album’s first single, which is fairly rocking by She & Him’s mellow standards. Perhaps they should have re-titled themselves She & Him & Them for the track?
Granted, this isn’t going to be to everyone’s tastes, being as determinedly old-fashioned as it is. As on “Volume One,” country, folk, and 60’s pop are the key influences, with the occasional unexpected flourish popping up here and there, such as the lovely Spanish-flavored acoustics on “Brand New Shoes” and “Lingering Still” or the Byrds-like electric guitars on “Over It Over Again.”
“Thieves” channels Roy Orbison with sweeping majesty and Deschanel’s soaring vocals, and “Don’t Look Back” is reminiscent of primo California pop, a la The Mamas & the Papas. The duet “Ridin’ in My Car” is pure twee bliss, with M. Ward and Deschanel making like the world’s cutest couple set to music.
Indeed, twee may be the operative word here. If you don’t like stuff that can be described as such- think the Concretes, early Cardigans, Los Campesinos and the like- then this is probably gonna get on your last nerve. And there’s no denying that the grooves can be a bit same-y throughout, but it’s not as if anyone was expecting a death metal tune cropping up. (Although THAT would certain be something- She & Him's latest single: a cover of The Misfits' "Last Caress"! Lol.)
When all is said and done, She & Him are pure pop bliss, and the musical world is that much better for their presence, least of all in these cynical times we live in. If anything, we could use a bit more of their brand of sunniness in difficult times such as these, so bring on “Volume Three,” by all means!
No comments:
Post a Comment