scott schultz

Let me make this clear upfront: She & Him is more than a Hollywood vanity project. A LOT MORE. The Zooey Deschanel/M. Ward project thrilled a near-capacity crowd at the Wiltern Theater on Saturday. Not only do they sound great reproducing their stellar Volume One, but they played enough new songs to make me excited for a Volume Two.

The show opened with a set by local folkies Lavender Diamond. The acoustics at the Wiltern are perfectly suited for Becky Stark’s operatic vocals. She was also joined on vocals by Abigail Chapin of the Chapin Sisters, one of my fave bands.

Between sets, I went to the smokers’ patio to bum a smoke off of some young fans, and it turned out that they only had one cigarette. We all smoked it together, and it was my favorite kind—WINK! They told me, as did the other people in attendance, that they discovered the band through word of mouth. I’m glad that their music is finding a way to reach the masses, but it’s a shame that commercial radio can’t find a place for a band who write some really beautiful pop music that I would describe as something between ’70s Nashville country and ’70s pop with modern sensibilities and production values.

Deschanel has AMAZING stage presense—no surprise, considering she’s a veteran of the screen and cabaret. M. Ward easily holds his own from stage left and the band was a sheer joy to watch and hear live. Stark put in double duty providing backup vocals for the hour-long set.

The new songs they performed maintain the quality of their first batch of originals. They also threw in at least one Joni Mitchell cover, which blended well with the She & Him tunes. Deschanel also handled a baffled stagejumper with class and style, giving the excited hipster girl her moment and then casually sliding over to the safety of the piano while the rhythm guitarist nudged the over-zealous fan back to the floor.

If you haven’t heard She & Him yet, I heartily recommend you seeking out their CD. And pester local radio stations—including a certain “independent” station that bannered the event—to start playing their music. I’m sure they’ll still be able to make time for 48 daily plays of the new MGMT song.