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She & Him, one of my new favorite bands, played LA last week. The show was in a movie theater called the Vista, which made me feel like I was at the Grand Ole Opry or something. In a good way.

The opening band was Lavender Diamond, and the sound in the Vista did lead singer Becky Stark’s booming voice tremendous justice. I’ve seen this band a couple of times, and that girl’s ability to jump hoops with that lilting voice makes me sick with jealousy.

The Grand Ole Opry feel was only exacerbated when Stark called out Zooey Deschanel to duet on a bunch of songs about love being the only answer and whatnot. They even did a sort of comedy act between songs, which was ridiculously charming. I was seriously expecting Minnie Pearl to walk on stage.

She & Him came out after a short intermission and started their set with “Black Hole”. It was then that I realized Deschanel was totally doing her best Linda Ronstadt:

The homage was later cemented with a rendition of “Oh No Not My Baby,” so I’m guessing it wasn’t a subconscious thing. And I guess if I had any criticism of the set, it would be just that: Zooey doesn’t seem to know who she is yet as a performer. But still. Despite her obvious nerves and her tendency to be a little too cute, she’s still great to look at and the music was pretty solid.

M. Ward stayed on the sidelines throughout the show, letting Zooey melt the hearts of the masses, but was still the undeniable leader of the band. Zooey’s instrument playing alternated between tambourine and piano:

They played most of the tracks from their album and some covers. For the last few songs, they called on Jason Schwartzman to play piano on a few songs. Yeah, I know that seems super obnoxious, a real orgy of the hip and young Hollywood actors, but by my estimation Schwartzman has proven himself tenfold with Coconut Records, so I opted not to view the collaboration negatively.

I did, however, take issue with Zooey taking on Screaming Jay Hawkins with “I Put a Spell on You.” That was taking it too far.

Nonetheless, it’s hard not to love She & Him. They’re a great band and so freaking adorable.

-Valentina

I’ve been bopping around in my canvas Keds Champions ever since Spring hit. However, I’ve reverted to my 6th grade self by wearing them sans laces. It’s an okay look, but admittedly kind of sloppy. So, I was pretty excited to see these Vans Aunthentic Lo Downs in Lucky magazine.

The lack of the third lace hole perks the style up a bit, and polishes up the classic shoe. I’m into it, but I’m waiting for the blue to come out.

-Valentina.