Mazzy Star

Pretentious, precious, and pouty-lipped, Hope Sandoval was the perfect vehicle for Mazzy Star's neo-psychedelic downer music. She sings like she could barely bother, an attitude that is a perfect fit for "Fade Into You," the band's 1994 minimalist near hit. Sounding a bit like a sad German ingenue -- a sweeter-voiced Marlene Dietrich -- she creates an almost perfect piece of pop melancholy with this cut, sighing rather than singing through the song. Guitarist David Roback's subtle slide work adds a spooky undercurrent that gives the track a rare atmosphere. This is Nico meets Bela Lugosi, or music to suck blood by.

"Fade Into You" is the clear highlight of So Tonight That I Might See, though "Five String Serenade" was another worthy pared-down amphetamine lullaby. The earlier She Hangs Brightly lacked a breakthrough song and seemed too slow, off by maybe 20 BPM. By the time Among My Swan rolled around, even Sandoval's dreamy voice couldn't make up for songwriting ideas that seemed like window dressing to her pale but beautiful mannequin of a voice. (CHARLES R. CROSS)

From 2004's The New Rolling Stone Album Guide