She and Him

Though fans of Him will flock to this debut, it is She who earns the spotlight: Zooey Deschanel wrote most of the songs and sings them all. Her girl-next-door vibrato and Ward's country inclination lend the album the lilt of a Crystal Gayle demo, with highlights in "This Is Not a Test" and "Change Is Hard." The covers toward the end -- chestnuts like Smokey's "You Really Got a Hold on Me" and a Hawaiian rendering of the Beatles' "I Should Have Known Better" -- offer campy rewards.

"She" is Zooey Deschanel, indie boys' movie-star crush of choice. "Him" is M. Ward, the
rootsy guitarist. Together they pose as a great lost Seventies AM-gold couple. Their
acoustic vibe conjures up a time-travel fantasy of key parties, hot tubs and Chablis-crazed
groping behind the spider plants. If this is your kind of thing, you will love this record,
because Deschanel and Ward definitely know their mellow. In every song, they... More >