Tagged: mward + review

If you take a good look at the album cover, you may recognise this young lady - Zooey Deschanel, the star of TV comedy series, New Girl. Long before playing the cute and quirky Jessica Day, she teamed up with M.Ward forming the group, SHE AND HIM in 2006. They proved to be on one-hit wonders with The post She And Him – Volume Three appeared first on Nothing But Hope And Passion - NBHAP - Music Magazine & more .

Such is the ludicrously concerted throwback aesthetic to overpower every last She & Him album that it seems disorienting to talk of pressing play, as opposed to allowing for the dust-enshrouded needle to wheedle its stilted way toward black wax but I'm pressing play. And, shameful though it may be to say so, I'm thoroughly enjoying what I'm hearing. For She & Him are something of a guilty pleasure. They perhaps shouldn't be, such are their indie credentials, but that's exactly what they are. There's no two ways about it; no cause for discussion: [...]

By now, pretty much everyone knows that She & Him- actress/singer Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward- aren’t everyone’s twee cup of tea. The polarizing pop duo have created three albums under their She & Him moniker, but often, fighting off the backlash appears to be more work than the actual creative process itself. Now, as Deshanel and Ward ready the release of their next installment Volume 3 , it’s easy to forget that She & Him are actual musicians, not just “adorkable” twee targets of ridicule. For better or worse, any critique of the band's music inevitably becomes a [...]

She & Him's third proper album album, aptly titled  Volume 3 , opens with a wall of sound explosion fit for Phil Spector . " I've Got Your Number, Son " is a bouncy kiss-off that gives nods to The Crystals and Ronnie Spector without recognizing the nuance of those group's songs. The older Spector-produced tunes let its singers and instrumentation breathe without bludgeoning the listener over the head with noise. " I've Got Your Number, Son " falls prey to the loudness issues that plague modern production, turning what [...]

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars When it comes to indie queens of the Continental United States, there’s no skirting around it, Zooey Deschanel holds her own. Toting her own TV show, girly advice website, and, of course, half of this dynamic duo, she’s got her plate full. And of course, the Him of the title, M. Ward, has his own musical career in addition to this side project. So sometimes it’s even easy to forget about She & Him , but Volume 3 is a nice little reminder of the talent within this [...]

She & Him: Volume 3 - With three full albums (including a Christmas album in 2011) under their belts, She & Him are comfortable in the best way. In the way that you can rely on them for some retro-chic, hipster-catnip music that really has the vocal chops, and the instrumental variety to stand on its own, no gimmicks needed. Zooey Deschanel, the very popular star of The New Girl , proves yet again that her voice is for real, and that her lyrics are too. With her band mate, Matthew Ward, [...]

• She & Him - Never Wanted Your Love

Lets be honest, it's a little bit hard not to fall in love with Zooey Deschanel, and whenever She And Him release new material it always becomes infinitely tougher. In recent years material from the duo has been sparse and seasonal, which makes the announcement of their forthcoming third album 'Volume 32 all the more exciting. Yesterday (7/3/13) saw them drop the first taste of the album in the form of a joyous new single (and it's as far from festive as you can get). You cant help but smile at 'Never Wanted Your Love', as hand claps [...]

The talented troubadour brought his signature sound to San Diego // Follow Owl and Bear on Facebook and Twitter for contests, MP3s, and links that don't make it onto the blog.

M Ward By Sam Cleeve July 2, 2012 M. Ward stands largely solitarily on the folk landscape. With his raspy, world-weary voice ready to go up against the most evocative of storytellers, his utterly unique fingerpicking technique allowing his five digits to work seemingly independently, and the thread of old-time americana running through his music, he's something of a paragon of his genre. Releases like 20012s End of Amnesia are almost flawless rainy-day records, solemnly lilting from one self-comforting lullaby to another.  [...]

Sitting in a clearing looking out over the gorge, hundreds of miles in any direction, it's difficult to recall the draw of even the most beautiful cities in the world. Open land, rolling hills, and, of course, the gorge itself cutting down into the Columbia River conjure up dreams of saying, "Fuck it!" and becoming that wandering hippy with a permanent smile that all of our parents are terrified we would eventually become. Then, just off to my right I see three of said perma-smilers and decide to go see some music then head back to Vancouver and my comfortable [...]

Day one of the third annual Hangout Fest went off without much of a hitch, even if it did feel hotter than low 80s. With the sun high in the sky and blazing, thousands of people funneled themselves into the festival’s secondary stage area to witness Brittany Howard and her Alabama Shakes prove that the hype was warranted. Oh, it was so warranted. And while the crowd was sizeable at sunset for legendary rockers Wilco’s set, it was nowhere near the depth of Alabama Shakes, and as the Wilco set progressed, people began to leave in [...]

"He continues to be masterful at funnelling exquisite new wine into dusty old bottles..." M. Ward | A Wasteland Companion In a sense M. Ward is a victim of his own success. With his success as a prolific producer and collaborator meaning many a fingers are in many a pie, his own solo work has been rather sidelined of late. Since his last long-player was released in early 2009, he has put out a second volume of his Grammy-nominated yet opinion-dividing She & Him project with actress Zooey Deschanel (followed by last year's collection [...]

I never considered self-indulgence a bad thing. Many critics always keep their high-strung arguments ever so close to their heart on the subject, but the fuss over this quality feels much too superfluous. Why must we strive to be better than our primal instincts? If artists have a romantic relationship with a style of music, let them be, dammit. There’s not much satisfaction to come out of sticking our noses up high because a musician indulges in a common sonic quality, they want us to indulge too. Lets keep in touch with those emotions, beloved indie rockers. [...]

She And Him - A Very She And Him Christmas By Rosie Duffield The lights are up in town, the shops are fully stocked and the ads have started on TV:  Christmas is well and truly on its way. Before you start getting annoyed with the same old festive songs being played out on the radio, She And Him have helpfully released their very own Christmas album to get you through the yuletide period. And they don’t disappoint. Yes, ok, they have covered lots of those [...]

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars Every once in awhile, you come across a record that fits into your life perfectly, filling the empty emotional space, revitalizing your spirit.  Just one listen to Gold Leaves is all it takes to find that The Ornament seeps into your soul, establishing itself as an album that meets all your musical needs. "The Silver Lining" is one of those perfect pop songs, carefully constructed for the maximum benefit of listeners.  It's a gentle number, [...]

Vote for change – vote for She and Him (presses ‘play’ again, gulps cider).

Zooey Deschanel is a true indie Queen. Having starred in several independent films and the deliciously obscure TV series Tin Man , it only makes sense that she is one half of the delightful She and Him who have released their second album, Volume 2 . The band, made up of Deschanel and Mark Ward began as a one-off, non-committed band, but they seemed to mesh so well that decided to become an authentic touring and song writing band. The album is a step forward from their first, as all second albums should be. [...]

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars After a stunning debut that won over many a doubter, She & Him return for their second album, Volume Two .  You'd be hard-pressed to find someone who didn't appreciate the first effort, at least to a certain degree, but would the yearning for a second helping of Zooey be nearly as fulfilling as the first run through?  Honestly, it's probably equally as rewarding as the first record, but that gets lost in the fact that it doesn't [...]

"Hard not to like" is a phrase that gets thrown around too much, ignoring that hatred and close-mindedness seem more natural to the human condition than their counterparts. I have always found it easy to not like things. Zooey Deschanel is easy not to like. Have you seen her cotton commercial? She goes about her day-to-day activities of vintage clothes shopping and vinyl sifting, making the already cliched hipster existence seem that much more stale. Hipsters do other things besides hipster activities. They watch football on Sunday. They go to family dinners and the laundromats and work boring jobs and probably drink PBR [...]

Yay, a super great new video from She & Him . I needed more Zooey in my life, that's for sure. I do have a thing for her, you know . http://radioexile.com/wordpres s/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/s heandhimandhim-500�375.jpg http://radioexile.com/wordpres s/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/s heandhimandhim-120�120.jpg