Universal Music Australia She And Him-melt Away - A Tribute To Brian Wilson Cd

She & Him, the acclaimed twosome of M.Ward and Zooey Deschanel are known for the stylish arrangements, sophisticated interpretations, and sharply drawn originals they have perfected across their exceedingly fruitful six-album, 14-year collaboration.

Now, with Melt Away: A Tribute to Brian Wilson, their seventh full-length release (and first for Fantasy,) the duo has crafted a love letter to 60 s-era Southern California-inspired pop that stands on its own as a defining musical achievement.

Produced by M.Ward and mixed by Tom Schick (Wilco, Norah Jones, Iron and Wine), Melt Away: A Tribute to Brian Wilson is the pair s first in six years and features an abundance of smartly chosen Wilson/Beach Boys compositions, some universally beloved and others a little less familiar. All of them though, whether ingrained in your soul or hearing for the first time, share a flair for the dramatic. Ward and Deschanel bring their uncanny communal musical instincts to these pop-noir confections and re-imagine them for these times.

The inviting, twangy album opener, Brian Wilson and Mike Love s Darlin , (from the Beach Boys 1967 album Wild Honey) sets a high bar that She & Him meets throughout. The duo s devoted take on Wouldn t It Be Nice is especially revealing. Most wouldn t consider touching the stone-cold classic, yet they lean into it with unabashed joy. Elsewhere, the band s sublime version of Wilson s mournful Til I Die is a three-minute and 22 second marvel. Deschanel s spectacular vocal turn on the criminally overlooked Wilson solo cut Melt Away transforms the original s lush, string-heavy treatment into a post-modern folk-pop gem. Other highlights include the surf-rock throwback Do It Again, featuring vocals from Brian Wilson himself (!) and the graceful Please Let Me Wonder, a long-treasured Wilson album cut. Finally, the Beach Boy s timeless Don t Worry Baby might be the album s centerpiece and most affecting track. M.Ward s earthy, laconic lead vocal layered over an exquisite arrangement feels organic and completely new just like this album, a stunner in every way.