Venus
No. 15, Spring 2003
By Bonnie Thurston

San Francisco vocalist-songwriter Bonni Evensen and Steven Roback (of L.A. band Rain Parade) have teamed up to offer Lilywhite, the debut release by their duo Snowy.
Drums and loops (contributed by American Music Club's Tim Mooney), along with Roback's eerie psychedelic organ sounds, mesh to create a chilling funhouse soundtrack for Evensen's emotionally hazy vocals. While the duo seems to be influenced by British trip-hop (the production on some tracks is reminiscent of Portishead, and more obviously, Goldfrapp) Lilywhite lacks the elaborate production of a "Dummy" or "Felt Mountain." The result is a largely unadulterated vocal.
Evensen's voice has a sweetness that sets it apart from other artists to whom the band has been compared (Portishead, Beth Orton, etc.). The album opens with the ethereal "Three A.M.," a sort of love note to a ghost, and continues with "Surf Song" and "Pills," two tracks on which Evensen surprisingly recalls Karen Carpenter. "Daisies and Ashes" features simple yet compelling piano that nicely underscores the lyrical frustration of lovers who find it hard to communicate through words ("We're speaking foreign tongues but it doesn't really matter / 'Cause sometimes we're just filled with useless chatter").
While Snowy breaks no new ground musically or emotionally on Lilywhite, the CD is easy to listen to. It is structured very much like a soundtrack, and although engaging, doesn't put a lot of demands on the listener and seems to get better with every spin.