When She & Him debuted with Volume One (QRO review) in 2008, expectations were low, despite ‘Him’ being acclaimed indie-folk artist M. Ward (QRO album review), because ‘She’ was actress Zooey Deschanel (FOX’s The New Girl), and expectations are always low whenever an actor or actress moves into music (kind of like when a musician moves into acting…). Yet the record proved the doubters wrong, with charm and country-girl style. This kept up with 2010’s Volume Two (QRO review), and the pair finally had an at least somewhat original album title in the following year’s Christmas album, A Very She & Him Christmas (QRO review). Volume 3 keeps it going – though, at this point, the expectations aren’t low, and instead one can see a lack of growth.
Once again, Deschanel has a wonderful country-girl voice in the style of Patsy Cline throughout Volume 3, though it comes as much less of a surprise this time ‘round, and there is very little of Ward’s voice outside of duet cover “Baby”. Indeed, the whole record feels more ‘She’ than ‘Him’ than prior releases, and not to knock Deschanel, but it was Ward who more made the very old country stylings feel fresh with his interesting guitars. Instead, Volume 3 feels more directly like something released in the fifties – not necessarily a bad thing (Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories feels like it could have been released in the seventies – QRO review), but the country girl-group style is not wholly original (especially at fourteen tracks in total).
Standouts include catchy opener “I’ve Got Your Number, Son” and the following, very charming “Never Wanted Your Love”. Deschanel is slyer on “Something’s Haunting You”, and the cover of Blondie’s “Sunday Girl” (including the French lyrics) at least moves the girl-group onto the garage-road. And there is a distinct sign of something more with “Together”, thanks to its light disco backbeat and eighties saxophone – drawing from other prior decades perhaps, but for something original.
She & Him have been carried by Deschanel’s charm & Ward’s skill, and that’s still present on Volume 3. But with the hipster-haters long gone and Deschanel’s voice established, is it too much to ask that Volume 3 not sound so much like Volumes One and Two (it does appear that the duo at least did shift from spelling out the number to just the digit…)?
She & Him – Never Wanted Your Love
