I once had beef with Zooey Deschanel. It was a problem that stemmed from the fact that while I love the doe eyed and quirky celebrity, she is, and it does truly pain me to say this, not the greatest actor. Sure, she does well in films in which she plays herself, someone eccentric, full of wit and sarcasm, but has had trouble moving beyond this.
To put it plainly, girlfriend just can’t emote. Here I was, in love with Deschanel, sure that we could be the best of friends, if only I could get past my disregard for her work. I’m sure she was as troubled by this as I was.
Then came She & Him, the indie-pop band band consisting of equal parts Deschanel and M. Ward. It was almost too perfect. This is what Deschanel was good at, what I could unabashedly love her for. This week we see the release of A Very She & Him Christmas, the bands third album. While their sound is one I usually associate with sunny drives during summer, these twelve Christmas standards seem the perfect vehicle for a boy, his guitar, and a girl’s very pretty voice. A special favorite, “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” is that exactly: Deschanel’s voice swooning with American Christmas tradition and M. Ward’s guitar work taking it somewhere decidedly more Spanish.
Admittedly, this is a Christmas album. It does a beautiful job of getting you in the Christmas mood, especially for those of us living in more tropical climates, where the only inclination that the holiday season is close is when the decorations see their way to the front of the store at Target.
Still, you won’t find yourself listening to A Very She & Him Christmas during summer (unless you’re one of those people). Regardless, if only for as long as the coldest of seasons last, the album is a special thing. She & Him aren’t exactly known for breaking boxes. Nonetheless they take these songs and infuse them with their trademark rock nostalgia.
Sarah McBride is an impassioned pop-culture enthusiast. Her thoughts on music, film, lit and life can be found at sarahism.com. You can follow her on twitter @sarahism.