The season seven American Idol contestant covers the 2006 Gnarls Barkley hit.
Broken Bells sounds a lot like exactly what it is: a collaboration between Danger Mouse and James Mercer . Close your eyes for a minute and imagine what it would be like if Danger Mouse (half the brains behind Gnarls Barkley , 2006's wonder child) produced The Shins (another mid-decade, verge-of-being-a-has-been act). If those acts were your top-played fodder a couple years ago - and you didn't think Danger-produced albums like The Black Keys ' Attack & Release and the second Gnarls Barkley album were bland as [...]

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars If you've been living in a cave for the past 10 years or so, here's a music tip: There's an indie rock band from New Mexico called the Shins and there's a music producer from New York named Danger Mouse (aka Brian Burton ) . They are both good at their respective positions and have enjoyed very lucrative careers. Well the romantic tale begins in 2004 in Denmark when Shins front-man James Mercer met with Burton and they discovered a mutual respect and fandom. After [...]

Filed under: Video , Exclusive Every good business runs focus groups these days -- you always want to be one step ahead of your consumer. And for Broken Bells , the delightful duo of Danger Mouse ( Gnarls Barkley ) and James Mercer (the Shins ), they tested out their new self-titled album on a set of truly fresh, young ears. Last week, we saw the results of the lead single 'The High Road,' which received passing marks from three out of the four [...]
James Mercer is kind of on my shit list. As a guy who was inspired by the Shins albums "Oh, Inverted World" and "Chutes Too Narrow," I felt that the band's last album "Wincing the Night Away" was a step backwards, eventually made all the more painful because James Mercer later fired all the other guys in the band. We'll have to wait and see what comes of the new Shins record with Mercer's new hired hands later this year, but there's another project Mercer has on his plate, and that's a collaboration with Danger Mouse. Yes, the famed producer [...]

You Gotta See This to Believe It Sights & Sounds from Days Past...... The Sample for Gnarls Barkley's Crazy From a spaghetti western, Viva Django Don't worry, I hadn't heard of it either . Check out the big pinnacle scene near the end. [...]

Broken Bells, the musical love child of Gnarls Barkley's Danger Mouse (aka Brian Burton) and The Shins' James Mercer, will be going on a short US tour to promote the release of their self-titled debut album. They will be stopping by New York's Music Hall of Williamsburg on March 10th . We will be giving away a pair of tickets to a lucky reader, and a copy of the duo's debut record on vinyl and the nifty Shins concert poster you see on your left to another reader. This 133 x 263 poster is from [...]

Filed under: Exclusive , New Music , Canada Before James Mercer teamed up with Danger Mouse to form the two-man band Broken Bells , he was seriously burned-out. His band, the Shins , had long enjoyed critical acclaim and endorsements, but when its third album 2007's 'Wincing the Night Away," garnered a Grammy nod, the indie darlings suddenly became a mainstream draw. Mercer said the success came at a price. "Along with the successful record comes a lot [...]

Filed under: News , Video , New Music , Exclusive Some know-it-all indie kids claim that the formation of Broken Bells -- a super-duo comprised of James Mercer (the Shins ) and Danger Mouse ( Gnarls Barkley ) -- comes as little surprise. But to everyone else, the collaboration comes as a total coup. In this promotional video, the first for Broken Bell's upcoming self-titled debut, a panel of expert judges aren't even aware that the two men conducting their focus group are [...]
Filed under: Video , The Hit List On Valentine's Day, thoughts turn to romance and kisses and the enduring bonds of love. Or, perhaps, the absolute hooey of a meaningless holiday created to sell saps a bunch of garbage to give to cold-hearted jerks who won't appreciate it anyway. Fortunately for the latter camp, many of the most potent videos ever made were created in the name of heartbreak. Here are the top 10 videos that scream, "Love really sucks!" 10. ' Blinded by the Lights [...]

About a month and a half ago, I posted a snOMG mix in honor of having somewhere in the neighborhood of 16 inches pile down in the grand old seat of Washington DC...not exactly a place deemed a Winter Wonderland. Well, if you've been watching the news or the weather at all this week...we actually topped the crazy snowfall that inspired the snOMG mix . We got two feet of snow this weekend...with at least one more foot on the way starting tomorrow. I haven't been to work since Friday morning and I doubt I'll go back to work [...]
Click here to view the embedded video. The video for the new James Mercer (The Shins) and Danger Mouse (Gnarls Barkley) collaboration, Broken Bells. Broken Bells' self-titled, full-length debut is out March 9th on Sony. Download the track here . Tags: Broken Bells , Danger Mouse , Gnarls Barkley , The Shins Gnarls Barkley + The Shins = Broken Bells (7) [...]
broken bells - the high road [this is a bit of an event for indie music fans as the shins lead singer james mercer joins up with danger mouse on a brand new project. as you know the last time danger mouse worked with an artist, the result was a little band called gnarls barkley. buzz is high, plus the album is pretty good.] http://feeds.feedburner.com/Wo ngiesMusicWorld

20. Campus - Vampire Weekend From the self titled album Vampire Weekend , released in 2008. Amazon.com Widgets 19. No one does it like you - Department of Eagles From the 2008 album In Ear Park . 18. Home [...]

Filed under: News , New Music , Exclusive After working together in secret for more than a year, James Mercer and Danger Mouse (aka Brian Burton) have finally broken their silence to discuss their new joint project, Broken Bells. The Shins frontman and the famed producer, who's also one half of Gnarls Barkley , are gearing up to release their self-titled debut on March 9. Taking a break from rehearsing in Los Angeles for their first live shows together, Burton [...]
Start off the new year with a bang ... literally! And why not - there's nothing else to do in these frigid temps. Your best bet is to burrow under a down comforter with something cute and snuggly and not your childhood stuffed animal. Sure, you could hit the gym, that's one way to combat the doughy advances on your midsection, but the gym can't make out with you; this methodology is a welcomed alternative for calorie burning. (Please note: Radio Exile does not take responsibility for any buns that may manifest in any [...]
That period between Christmas and New Year is, essentially, meaningless. Hours pass by in a haze of food, drink and old Disney films and no-one can remember what day it is. During this period Musick heard a couple of songs by Broken Bells , aka producer Danger Mouse and that guy from The Shins . As with all Danger Mouse endevours - be it producing for the likes of Gorillaz , The Rapture and Beck , or co-fronting Gnarls Barkley - the results have a vintage feel, as if some lost record [...]

Completely incredible that I am writing about an album that doesn't come out until March 9th, and yet I am late, compared to the many more diligent blogs around. This isn't even fashionably late, I think we've gone far beyond that. Yet I can't help feeling that it's completely insane for this to be the case, and even more crazy to let that be a reason not to write about it. James Mercer (of The Shins "fame") and Danger Mouse (of, well, Danger Mouse fame) threw together this selection of songs at Danger Mouse's home studios, naming the [...]

Filed under: News Guitarist Josh Klinghoffer has allegedly confirmed that he has replaced John Frusciante in the Red Hot Chili Peppers . MusicRadar reports that the 30-year-old, L.A.-based guitarist emailed the former owner of his website to assert that he is indeed in the band. Last month, Frusciante announced he had left the band after news broke that the Chili Peppers had ended their hiatus and were beginning work on the follow-up to 'Stadium Arcadium' with Klinghoffer. With word coming from Klinghoffer, who has [...]
20. Peter Bjorn & John - "Young Folks" ; Who knew whistling could be this catchy? Maybe if Andrew Bird would have simplified things he would have wound up on this list! Either way there is no denying how great this song was the first time you heard it and it still is, unless you overplayed it for yourself. 19. Gnarls Barkley - "Crazy" ; No doubt this song HAS to be on every list of this kind. Placement is a personal choice but there is no denying [...]