M. Ward

Set loose from his partnership with Zooey Deschanel, M. Ward's post-Post War solo return is a contemplative one, dedicated to brooding on William Blake, referencing Pink Floyd and reflecting on mortality. A methadone-lazy cover of Don Gibson's "Oh Lonesome Me" (with Lucinda Williams) exemplifies how, this time around, the ornate production finally serves Ward's simple ethos. Even though it's his biggest record yet, it's executed with such elegance that you barely notice the grandeur.

On his first solo disc since teaming up with singer-actress Zooey Deschanel on the She and
Him project last year, raspy-voiced troubadour M. Ward seems different. His immaculately
arranged Americana is still as comforting as an old cardigan, but now there's a hint of
sunshine in the melodies, especially on the Deschanel-assisted "Never Had Nobody Like
You." There's a touch of Spector and Wilson in the arrangements; Ward piles stri... More >