The Shins are an alternative rock band that Val and I can't describe very well to folks that have never heard of them.
I think they're classified as "Alternative Chamber Pop" on my iPod.
They conjure the Beatles for me (I don't know why exactly), but they also have equal parts New Wave and Alternative Country Twang. A unique sound fo-sho. They are led by James Mercer. Apparently he fired his original line-up cuz they sucked at live shows. This bummed a bunch of Garden State fans, but I thought his band last night was legit! They not only sounded good live, but, I think The Shins might sound better live than on their albums! (Zoinks!)
I'm blogging about them because Val and I went to see them at Red Butte Garden last night.
Val and I LOVE Red Butte Garden! Not just because of the wonderful concert venue, either. Those gardens are damned beautiful! My girls love to run and play there. If you haven't been there in a while, you should go. Totally worth it! (Especially if you're a U of U student: FREENESS!!)
Anyhoo, despite the temperature dropping, like, 20 degrees last night, it was one of the best concerts I've been to in a while. Great sound and worthy opening acts Blind Pilot and The Head and the Heart.
Lead singer James Mercer has an unorthodox sounding voice with surprising range. Most of his songs tend to have quirky arrangements but as their set list spanned all Shins albums, there was clearly "a sound" that is all his own. (Fun Fact: James Mercer revealed that he lived in Roy, UT when he was 8 years old! The Ogden area isn't a giant piece of shit after all!)
They went completely mad scientist on the song "No Way Down" off of their new album. To me, the album version was just alright, but the live version was amazing! They played it with some funk-itude and a baseline that bounced your face off!
I guess I just wanted to blog to 1) pretend that I'm cool and that I'm a scene-ster, 2) to say that The Shins translate surprisingly well from "in-the-bedroom-with-headphones-on" to a fun, live act, and 3) because a hipster in front of us danced like this!
If you haven't ever listened to The Shins, I'd recommend starting with this album:
My older brother turned me on to them with this album. It's as good as it gets. (Probably one of my all-time favorites). After that, I think you'd like "Oh Inverted World." THEN if you're sold on their unique sound, you'll go GONZO for "Winching the Night Away!"
Where "Wincing the Night Away" found a weird 80's New Wave/Futuresound, their new album, "Port of Morrow" delves into 70's Easy-Listening/Futuresound. James Mercer can create songs that stretch back to 70's/80's roots and then slingshot forward to a cool new sound. (If that makes any sense at all).
I guess that's the point. Nobody sounds like these guys. I can't explain their sound, but I know I like it.
Put a bird on it!
