She & Him - Volume One
As the woozy jazz recital that is Take It Back rises and fades in two-and-a-half minutes of understated mastery, this outing almost seems worth it
The inclusion of an actor in any band set-up always carries with it a certain sense of foreboding. Russell Crowe anyone? Admittedly, Hollywood mid-leaguer Zooey Deschanel couldn’t have simply clicked her fingers for an opportunity to prove her hybrid credentials, but the old adage ‘jack of all trades, master of none’ still looms close. The good news is that She & Him is a far cry from the A-List atrocities we’ve had to suffer in the past, though they’re still no triumph. Volume One lilts from the 60s prom pop of I Was Made for You, to the Midwest-diner background bleed of I Should Have Known Better, drawn along throughout by Deschanel’s childish hand and swooning, bygone-era sentiment. It's intermittently endearing, but ultimately float-away light. That said, as the woozy jazz recital that is Take It Back rises and fades in two-and-a-half minutes of understated mastery, this outing almost seems worth it. (Paul Neeson)