A Very She & Him Christmas

On these holiday standards, Zooey Deschanel's silky alto swirls with M. Ward's dexterous guitar as fluidly as the red and white of a candy cane—and the resulting sound is just as sweet. A tropical breeze wafts through the album, most notably on ukulele-led "Silver Bells" and over the echoing surf licks of "Christmas Day," written by Brian Wilson. There are melancholic moments, but the spirit is as winking and playful their seasonal tête-à-tête "Baby, It's Cold Outside."