Winter

Jack and White are the folk-based Los Angeles duo of singer/songwriters Jack Matranga and Brooke White. Riding the buzz of their summery 2011 EP Gemini, they return with Winter, a solid follow-up that captures the feeling of staying cozy in the cold season's crisp night air. Singing lead for the first time, Matranga lends a mysteriously cool, androgynous tone to the opening song, “Night After Night,” though it’s White’s close harmonies that dynamically open up the tune. When White and Matranga sing longingly for a vacation away from the cold rain, they hit moments that recall the chemistry between Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham. This follows them into the next song, “Bright Side of the Bad News,” a standout track laced with haunting nods to Fleetwood Mac’s Rumors. It gets even more difficult to curb the Stevie Nicks comparisons in "XYZ,” where White’s vocals have the slightly scratchy timbre associated with classic hits like “Dreams” and “Gold Dust Woman.” The closing ballad, “Voices,” shimmers with original brilliance.