Tagged: shins + review

"I ask, 'cause I'm not sure: do anybody make real shit anymore?" It's a conundrum up to which the contemporary recording artist must have to face on a nigh on daily basis and, to surmise, although there may be plenty continuing to make the real shit to which dear Kanye here refers, originality is all but a thing of the past by and large. You know, to state the ineluctable obvious, and whatnot... Though imitation can, and indeed often is the sincerest form of flattery, and this an aphorism Ontario troupe [...]

Anniversary packages are usually designed as nostalgia trips, a way to give fans a gift of a few extra songs on top of the ones they've already bought at least once. In the case of The Postal Service , the famed side project of  Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard and Dntel's Jimmy Tamborello , has a 10 th anniversary edition of their lone record, Give Up,   to serve as a reminder [...]

Indie, eh? Not since the turn of the millennium has it stood for its true meaning of independent, its reputation instead sullied by the disreputable nonsenses of the exclusively British likes of Bloc Party, Kaiser Chiefs, Bombay Bicycle Club, The Courteeners etc. ad infinitum. It's a grave shame, not least as what was once a blanket term has been bastardised by the dirtiest of explicit connotations. Though in amongst all the turgid, and in many respects cheapskate sonic templates – not to mention the lazy categorisation itself – are glimpses of brilliance; of innovation, and so too relative independence. That [...]

At this point in human history, we all know that anything labeled as "cool" isn't really cool anymore. But  indie veterans The Spinto Band don't care much about that and named their third full length album "Cool Cocoon" . The album is indeed a very enjoyable piece of indie pop with no pretensions, proving that the band hasn't lost its touch even after all this time. The case of The Spinto Band is very peculiar since they had a major indie hit some years ago [...]

Much to my disgruntlement, I've yet to make it to New Mexico. Hot dog; jumping frog: Albuquerque , and whatnot. I guess it's the state's proximity to, and yet its plainly demarcated and closely monitored dislocation from, Central America which appeals: gorging on breakfast burritos in scorching heat – particularly around about this time of year – is a rather appealing proposition, it has to be said, and one which is only enhanced by a sense of greater touristic security, I should full well imagine. Though to turn sweltering eyes, wagging tongues and salivating glands from a culinary, to [...]

Cayucas have premiered their new single, "Swimsuit," b-side to their single 73 on Secretly Canadian. "Swimsuit" starts with a bright shimmery wave of organ and a solid bass line. The song speaks to Cayucas' Santa Monica home base and is a welcome warm breeze for the winter months. The 73 single with title track "Cayucos" is out now and Yudin has been working with producer Richard Swift (The Shins, Damien Jurado, The Mynabirds) on a full-length album that will be released in early 2013. The band will also join Ra Ra Riot for their run [...]

Hip young folkster  Devendra Banhart has done some mutedly outlandish things in his time and whilst restitching some sequin glare into Taylor Dayne's Tell It To My Heart in order that it resemble a spangly psych-disco number was one of his more successful endeavours, dating porcelain bore Natalie Portman was arguably one of his lesser ventures. Lukewarm latest,  What Will We Be , could probably be charted somewhere or other ambiguous in between though a preliminary glimpse into its follow-up,  Mala , not only ups the calibre, but also the kookiness: Für Hildegard von Bingen is an ode [...]

Segunda entrega de los mejores 50 discos de 2012, según el equipo de indieHearts : 30.  The Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania ¿Cuánto hay de Pumpkins en los actuales Pumpkins? Corgan desempolva sus vinilos de Yes y Rush y bajo el amparo del ambicioso proyecto Teargarden By Kaleidyscope , surge Oceania . Varios temas perpetúan la línea de las últimas búsquedas musicales de Corgan, más cercanas al metal alternativo y progresivo ( [...]

The two bands made for musical bliss // Follow Owl and Bear on Facebook and Twitter for contests, MP3s, and links that don't make it onto the blog.

Pink Bullets by The Shins There are many ways by which a song can be great. Sometimes we have criteria that guide our beliefs, while at other times it's simply a matter of momentary mood that guides our taste. We can crave songs like we crave food, or get sick of them from overindulgence. Sometimes, however, all those rules and all that variability goes out the window with a song that you just can't bring yourself to skip.   Pink Bullets by The Shins definitely qualifies as a classic that [...]

Lollapalooza 2012 Day One is in the books. Below is a wrap up of the the acts that we had a chance to catch on Friday... 2:15 p.m.: The Black Angels Photo by Richard Giraldi Austin's The Black Angels wasted no time in bringing a cloud of neo-psychedelic rock over the sweaty crowd gather at the Bud Light stage. Guitarist Christian Bland laid down both delicate jangly chords and buzz-saw fuzz riffs, and vocalist Alex Maas [...]

It has often been said that the best art raises questions rather than giving answers. If this was indeed the case for The Shins forthcoming album, Port of Morrow , rather than the unconvincing direction of front man James Mercer's recent musical aspirations, I would be tempted to jump on the bandwagon with my fellow aging old school Indy enthusiasts in praising this album as the relevant come back we all hoped for from one of the premier Indy-pop bands that stole our hearts. But much like that accidental fling with an ex-lover, the album left me outwardly satisfied [...]

By Michel Dussack Just when it seemed that The Shins were done, James Mercer surprised everyone by announcing the band’s heavily anticipated fourth album, ‘Port of Morrow’. Despite Mercer being the only original member still in the band, the album was a fantastic effort that received glowingly positive critical reception. On April 30th, the band came to New York’s Terminal 5 for the second of three sold out shows at the 3,000 capacity venue. Opening the show was Brooklyn based ...

The Shins are back with a new line-up and a refreshingly playful sound for their fourth album. Music Player (reviews): 01 The [...]

• The Shins - September

As Saturday drew to a close, the big bands came out to play // Follow Owl and Bear on Facebook and Twitter for contests, MP3s, and links that don't make it onto the blog.

Artist : The Shins Title : Port Of Morrow Label : Aural Apothecary/Columbia Release Date : Monday 19th BUY IT Written by Katrina Davidson-Gray After a five year hiatus, a new project with Danger Mouse under the alias Broken Bells , and squeezing out a couple of sprogs, front man James Mercer has returned [...]

The Shins - Port of Morrow By Rosie Duffield It’s been a while since we last heard from The Shins – five years, to be exact.  In that time James Mercer took on his Broken Bells side project, leaving Shins fans wondering whether there would ever be another Shins album, and if so, would it be any good? Thankfully there’s no need to panic.  Port Of Morrow has that unmistakable Shins feel to it; jangly, sometimes ethereal music set against whimsical lyrics that we’ve [...]

Ever since 2001 with the release of "Oh, Inverted World" , James Mercer has been making some of the catchiest, most genuine pop songs in recent memory. The compositions of Mercer have pretty much set the basic standard of what indie rock is and has been for the past decade, and have no doubt both inspired and energized the world of music. This constant stream of fantastic, well-executed pop music came to a halt after the release of "Wincing the Night Away" , which expanded and widened the sound of The Shins [...]

The Shins [Ed. note: We weren't lucky enough to partake of SXSW's mighty cornucopia of musical delights, but our pal and former Austinite, Sara, made the trip and was just darn cool enough to write this here post for us and you. She highlights some of the best bands listened to and food tasted, and gives some handy tips for any festival newbies looking to go in the future. Thanks, S!] Words and photos by Sara Ever fancied a trip to Austin, TX to check out [...]

On the Shins' fourth album, the band bring some newer, bigger production to the table. However, the band doesn't exactly present the energy or personality to make these ambitious sounds exciting. WATCH THE REVIEW