2008 Woodie Awards
New album from The Shins proves worthy of long wait
Caleb Knox, Staff Writer
Issue date: 2/20/07
Last Updated: 8/9/07
It's been four years since their last album and three years since they changed Natalie Portman's life in "Garden State."
The Shins are back on top of the music world with their new album, "Wincing The Night Away." Released on January 23, "Wincing" debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart, their highest debut ever.
Let's not mince words here: The album is phenomenal. If The Shins are a modern-day Weezer, this is their "Pinkerton." If they're Pink Floyd, this is their "Dark Side of The Moon." Instead of capitalizing on their Zach Braff-induced fame, they waited four long years between albums. The result? A carefully-crafted masterpiece, as solid from top to bottom as some of the top albums of the past decade.
Singer/songwriter/guitarist James Mercer, keyboardist/guitarist/bassist Marty Crandall, lead guitarist Dave Hernandez and drummer Jesse Sandoval held their cards close to their chest while recording the album. Track by track they reveal their hand, starting with what should become an intro for the ages in "Sleeping Lessons." It starts off nearly inaudible, and then opens further and further until it explodes into an energetic standout track.
The epic disc that follows could be described as the result of The Shins meeting Echo and the Bunnymen and Joy Division for a round of cold ones. In addition to the strength of the songwriting, producers Mercer and Joe Chiccarelli (Beck, U2) should be proud. They've kept all of the aspects that made The Shins' previous albums (2001's "Oh, Inverted World" and 2004's "Chutes Too Narrow") great, but coursing through it all is a hollow, almost 1980s sound. Melancholy is permitted to seep in, but depression is not. Each track is tethered in reality by either the lyrics or the jolliness of the music.
Perhaps the best example is the first single, "Phantom Limb." Driven by Mercer's trademark voice and one prominent tambourine, this sing-along is jam-packed with cheerfully melancholy lyrics, backup vocals by Anita Robinson of Viva Voce, and enough "whoa-oh"s to drown a horse. The fairly obtuse lyrics seem to be about the awkward end to an awkward high school romance, but you can't help but sing along with a smile on your face.
The Shins are back on top of the music world with their new album, "Wincing The Night Away." Released on January 23, "Wincing" debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart, their highest debut ever.
Let's not mince words here: The album is phenomenal. If The Shins are a modern-day Weezer, this is their "Pinkerton." If they're Pink Floyd, this is their "Dark Side of The Moon." Instead of capitalizing on their Zach Braff-induced fame, they waited four long years between albums. The result? A carefully-crafted masterpiece, as solid from top to bottom as some of the top albums of the past decade.
Singer/songwriter/guitarist James Mercer, keyboardist/guitarist/bassist Marty Crandall, lead guitarist Dave Hernandez and drummer Jesse Sandoval held their cards close to their chest while recording the album. Track by track they reveal their hand, starting with what should become an intro for the ages in "Sleeping Lessons." It starts off nearly inaudible, and then opens further and further until it explodes into an energetic standout track.
The epic disc that follows could be described as the result of The Shins meeting Echo and the Bunnymen and Joy Division for a round of cold ones. In addition to the strength of the songwriting, producers Mercer and Joe Chiccarelli (Beck, U2) should be proud. They've kept all of the aspects that made The Shins' previous albums (2001's "Oh, Inverted World" and 2004's "Chutes Too Narrow") great, but coursing through it all is a hollow, almost 1980s sound. Melancholy is permitted to seep in, but depression is not. Each track is tethered in reality by either the lyrics or the jolliness of the music.
Perhaps the best example is the first single, "Phantom Limb." Driven by Mercer's trademark voice and one prominent tambourine, this sing-along is jam-packed with cheerfully melancholy lyrics, backup vocals by Anita Robinson of Viva Voce, and enough "whoa-oh"s to drown a horse. The fairly obtuse lyrics seem to be about the awkward end to an awkward high school romance, but you can't help but sing along with a smile on your face.
For this reason, The Whitworthian asks readers to be responsible and respectful in any comments posted. The responsibility for statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not the whitworthian.com. Readers are also encouraged to report questionable comments by e-mailing editor@whitworthian.com.
Be the first to comment on this story