Lilywhite's liner notes credit former Rain Parade-er Steven Roback as a producer and collaborator, but another Roback, Mazzy Star's David, comes to mind at the first frosty hum of Snowy's debut. That the brothers share more than claims to California's Paisley Underground movement becomes obvious a minute into opener "Three a.m." as vocalist Bonni Evensen floats in over a foggy bed of accordion, drums and piano that could have ably framed Hope Sandoval's pathos in the mid 90's. There's an icy calm here--you could play Lilywhite at high noon in Ecuador in the middle of July and, El Niño or not, the sky would darken and the temperature would drop at least 10 degrees. But in a welcome shift, Snowy lets glints of hope escape from the ether. Optimism comes from Evensen's we'll-get-through-this vocals: On "Pills" she urges, "All the pills that make your day a ball of tangled twine, will melt away in the sunlight." But darkness--Roback's languid backup vocals and American Music Club vet Tim Mooney's buzzing samples--always creeps back in to envelope Evensen's sultry croon, which comfortably lingers far enough above the fuzz to beckon toward a world where night is just as fun as light.