She & Him (the indie pop group consisting of actress-singer-songwriter Zooey Deschanel and singer-songwriter M. Ward) has come to symbolize a certain precious, hipster mindset. It’s music for people who know every line of 500 Days of Summer (also featuring Ms. Deschanel), people who wear dryly ironic t-shirts, people who wear hats to parties.

Deschanel, who writes all of the band’s songs (save for a few covers), is an unconventional beauty with an old-fashioned voice and a penchant for 50s and 60s doo-wop and girl-group pop. It would be easy to dismiss her, and this group, as completely shallow, picking over the bones of classic song styles for the sake of looking cool. At times I’ve been tempted to do exactly that.

But the music on both their debut album, Volume One, and their new release, Volume Two, prevents me from dismissing them. For despite the hype and the obnoxiousness that permeates coverage of She & Him, they make lovely music. And not just lovely, but completely earnest and affecting music that belies that hipster reputation.

Deschanel isn’t reaching back to past decades because the style matches her dress… she’s a natural artist living in the wrong time. She should have been kicking around the Brill Building in the 60s, rubbing elbows with Carole King and Burt Bacharach. I’m not saying she’s as good as either of them, but she’s interested in writing and performing the same sort of music.

Volume Two picks up where Volume One left off and doesn’t go anywhere new. It’s another batch of bubbly pop with country flavoring, double-tracked backing vocals and some inspired guitar work and production by M. Ward. You could mix and match the songs from these two albums and not be sure which originated where. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Highlights include opener ‘Thieves,’ which would have been at home on a Beach Boys record; the luau-flavored ‘Lingering Still’; and the ballad ‘Me and You,’ which starts with just a gentle acoustic guitar and Deschanel’s aching vocal before strings and drums kick in to elevate the proceedings.

Whatever else they are, it’s safe to say at this point that She & Him are a legitimate band and not just some concept cooked up by a Gen-X think tank. They aren’t very deep and they don’t push any boundaries, but they are fun and bright and good for an easy smile. What’s not to like about that?