I really love this interview. I included a few of my favorite bits below!

From Time Out Magazine:

After releasing two albums of original songs, the star of Fox’s hit sitcom New Girl and the acclaimed singer-songwriter–producer present A Very She & Him Christmas, a stocking stuffer of delicate, intimate covers from the holiday canon. The duo spoke to us from L.A. about seasonal traditions, curing cynicism and attempting to cover Mariah Carey.

What made you decide to put out a Christmas album?

Him: We had been talking about making one since Day One. We have an affinity for old songs and melodies; it was a natural extension of our interests.She: One thing I love about Christmas music is that it has a tradition of warmth. Him: The sign of a great Christmas record is when you put it on in December and it’s like the first time you’ve heard the songs.

What do you think makes a good Christmas song?

Him: It’s about joy and peace. They’re not made for the cynical listener. I’ve learned from doing press for this record how cynical people are toward this holiday. But music is a great place to start to cure cynicism. We all feel that way sometimes, especially when commercialism has turned holidays and holiday music into a way to entice you to spend money.

I feel like cynics may be confused by your album. They might not want to like a Christmas record, but yours never comes off as schmaltzy.

Him: Yeah, I agree. I think if there is some jolliness to be found, we are not there to beat you over the head with it.

What did you gain from this approach?Him: It brings out the lyrics rather than this 12-piece bell choir or army of piccolos. There’s sort of a direct line between the listener and whatever inspired the songwriter, this connection that’s really hard to put your finger on.

Listening to the album, you can hear things like Zooey’s breaths between lines, or a very faint smacking of the lips—it made it feel very intimate.

Him: [This] record was produced the same way that I produce all my records: We recorded to analog tape instead of digital file. That’s what gives the music more breathing room. When there are breaths, or when there are little nuances like that, digital technology won’t even pick that up because the digital process is a filtration process. Either that, or a lot of engineers will just highlight it and delete it for the sake of volume and what’s calledcompression.

Zooey, is having your voice at the forefront liberating or terrifying?

She: That’s what you want. My kind of singing works best that way. Modern recording has made it so that people can spend forever taking shortcuts and making everything uniform, but that strips music of what makes it exciting.

Click the link above to read the rest! It’s a sweet interview. Made me smile.