The Shins - Wincing The Night Away

Personally, I didn’t really understand the great enthusiasm surrounding The Shins. I mean, I had their first CD right away, and I liked it as much as the next guy. Then Zach Braff declared them worthy of specific mention in an indie-type of film. I remember thinking, “that’s cool, decent band, worthy of more exposure.” And then everybody and their gardener decided that The Shins are the greatest band ever. Suddenly, their music is all over the radio, promoting fast food, on the cover of magazines and airplanes are shooting Shins clouds across the sky. Well, I was starting to O.D. on The Shins. However, I would not be writing about “Wincing The Night Away” if it wasn’t as brilliant as it is. This is certainly a more challenging listen I suppose, but darn it, I like challenging. The well constructed melodies are still there, as is showcased in “Phantom Limb,” albeit with a bit of a shoegazey-vibe to it. But the band has really taken a lot of risks on this one. I really dig the experimental “Sea Legs.” It begins with some crazy sounds providing the beat. I found out that the band actually sampled the popping of a plastic bag and bottle caps dropping on the amplifier to come up with that sound. There’s also a bit of flute and strings, as well as a really cool stop-start guitar sound before the song introduces a keyboard “bwop-wow” that sounds like it’s straight out of a 70’s blaxploitation film. For me, that’s my favourite song The Shins have ever done. “Red Rabbits” is sort of like The Beach Boys playing on tinker toys. And listening to “Split Needles” helped me to realize that Jesse Sandoval is actually an extremely good drummer. With The Shins’ last two albums, I listened to them a couple of times each and never really pulled them out again. But “Wincing The Night Away” will definitely be getting repetition on my ipod. Perhaps they were worth all of the hype after all.

The Shins will be performing March 17 at Kool Haus. Tickets are $27.50 and I'd get them quick because it'll likely sell out.

Download:
Phantom Limb mp3

The Shins myspace page.
Purchase “Wincing The Night Away” here.