She & Him create breezy springtime pop
In an age where every starlet and actress seems to be “working on an album,” Zooey Deschanel (an actress best known as the singing love interest of Will Ferrel in “Elf”) stands apart as a semi-talented musician in her own right. This week she and indie guitar guy crooner M. Ward have released a collaboration under the name “She & Him,” which, in spite of its grammatical dubiousness, manages to sparkle with catchy melodies covered with a smooth retro sheen. Deschanel can sing, although her voice tends to sound a bit thin when she is singing all by her lonesome. Ward solves this problem by multiplying her voice and employing it as a back up chorus, ’60s girl-group style. Stylistically, the songs go from retro country (complete with pedal steel arrangements that would make Tammy Wynette proud) to sunny, orchestral ’60s pop. Ward’s contributions here seem to be limited to a few pitch-perfect guitar solos and some backing vocals (most notably on the cover of the Beatles’ “You really got a hold on me”), and while he gives her the spotlight, the project has his fingerprints all over it. Ward never met an archaic song style he want to didn’t rip off, so this accounts for the strong yesteryear vibe that permeates the album. If the songs here represent a conscious effort to emulate a specific sound, then Deschanel aptly mimics Ronnie Spector (“I was made for you”), Linda Ronstandt (“Black Hole”), and even Diana Ross (kind of) on “Sweet Darlin’.” While this all creates a fun soundtrack for springtime road trips, it’s too backwards-looking to make a real impact. Still, Ward has found a suitable muse in Deschanel, and hopefully we will hear more from her in the future.
Grade: B