She and Him

I mentioned last week that I was going to write about the new She & Him album, Volume Two. I loved their 70's pop influenced debut album, particularly "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?" and was very excited to hear their latest effort. I finally put it on my iPod last night and dreamed of lead singer Zooey Deschanel all night in anticipation of hearing her soothing voice to brighten my morning. I was so underwhelmed while listening to it today on my commute to and from work that I instead am going to write about two similar artists that I believe are much better.

Camera Obscura's 2009 release, My Maudlin Career, is a great album from front to back. It was one of my favorites last spring as it rarely left the CD player in my car. My favorites from the album are "French Navy" and "The Sweetest Thing". Most of the tracks off this album are sappy love songs with interesting twists, quirky lyrics and great vocals. I especially like the horns on the closing track, "Honey In The Sun".

Another really good band with a similar sound is Providence's Death Vessel. I know what you're thinking, but Death Vessel really doesn't live up to their name. I first heard about them while they were out on tour with Fleet Foxes (if you click on one link in this whole post, it should be this one. Seriously, click it. NOW!) in the fall of 2008. Their 2008 release, Nothing Is Precious Enough For Us, is quite an impressive album. My favorite tunes on this CD are the folk and bluegrass inspired "Obadiah in Oblivion" and the calm and soothing track "Jitterkadie". Fun fact about Death Vessel, although the lead singer looks and sounds like a woman, it's actually a man.

Sorry for all the links, but hopefully you enjoy the songs!