Tell me about the Shins

Cafe Society
1

A few months ago I was in New Zealand, and a friend gave me Chutes Too Narrow by the Shins. I’d never heard of them (nor at the time seen Garden State), so I came to them with no preconceptions whatseover. The album has become one of my favourites-du-jour ever since.

The tunes are infectious, the musicianship compelling, the lyrics poetic, straying just on the comprehensible side of obsure. Fantastic, and I find myself listening to the album at least once a day.

But still, apart from Natalie Portman’s cheesy line about them in the movie - was that product placement or what? I had a look at the bio on their website, but that didn’t really tell me much. I know absolutely nothing about them. None of their history, their influences, their style.

Should I get their first album? Is there another one in the pipeline?

I’m not that into pigeonholing music, but I would like to know how other people perceive them. How old are they? Are they considered arthouse? Indy? Geek rock? In an annoying Amazon.com style, “People who bought the Shins also bought…” what?

2

I heard a friend describe them as “poppy pop pop” or something like that. I was expecting something like the Ramones, but it really reminds me more of Brian Wilson style complex sounding pop. Their first album is definitely worth getting.

3

Funny, I would never see them as “pop”, which I would think of more as the sort of the crap that comes out of American Idol and so on. They seem a lot more intelligent and way less mass-market.

The singer’s vocal style - just-about tuneful cracking falsetto - on a couple of the tracks actually puts me in mind of Perry Farrell.

4

The Shins’ first album is easily as good as the more popular second one. Go for it. As for other bands, I always tend to lump them together in my mind with the very excellent New Pornographers. They don’t necessarily have much in common musically, but I think a fan of one would definitely enjoy the other. Both play beautifully-crafted power-poppy indie rock, and you can’t go wrong with the New Pornographers’ first two albums, Mass Romantic and Electric Version. You will probably also like the Decemberists, and from them, I recommend their most recent album Picaresque.

5

Thank you, I will look out for these other groups, neither of which I’ve ever heard, either.

6

Just as a warning, if you’re planning on listening to a Decemberists album, keep a dictionary handy. It’s through them that I learned such words as “palaver,” “roustabout,” and “chaparral.” :slight_smile:

7

I confess I already know what all those words mean, because the first two are still used in England, and the latter is from a 1960s TV show that used that as part of its name…

8

The term seems to have an association to Top 40 radio hits, but I’d say the Shins definitely fit the Pop category with their catchy hooks and standard rock compositions and what-not.

I’ll second both the Pornographers and Decemberists.

9

I own a bunch of band t-shirts but only one t-shirt has had ladies (one lady actually) screaming that they loved me from across a train station (I heard her say it to her friends as I walked by). It was my Shins shirt.

If they have to be classified I would call it Indie Pop, a category that the New Pornographers would also fall under.

I think I remember reading that Shins placement in Garden State was done by director and lead actor, Zach Braff, since he loves the Shins. They even had two songs on the soundtrack.

10

The Decemberists are a good band. They remind me a bit of The Smiths, because of the exaggerated melodrama.

The New Pornographers is actually a good comparison. Both are poppy but with an abstract edge.

11

Similarily, Belle and Sebastian pretty much define twee (or, sub) pop. Hell, Shin’s label even has “pop” in its name.

Now, before suggestions, check out the following sites. Downloads, places to listen, etc - by far my favorite way to get into new music. They are in decreasing order of versatility, as I see fit.

www.pandora.com - Probably have seen this by now, go now if you haven’t
www.3hive.com - Collects the MP3s from bandsites the internet over
www.epitonic.com - MP3s, but hard to navigate and not really updated anymore
www.subpop.com - The major label if there ever was an indie equivalent (Shins and a thousand other awesome bands are on it)
www.jr.com - For listening to quick samples; works good for me, although YMMV
www.pitchforkmedia.com - The pretenious, hipster wankers who every pretenious, hipster indie kid pretends to hate, they are good for learning a little about the bands
With that out of the way, let’s do some suggestions, shall we? I’ll attempt, best as possible, to get links to (free, legal) mp3s with every one.

First, you seem to really enjoy twee pop. The Shins sound completely different than any other band you care to mention, but there are several other distinctive bands that have the same mellow, poppy sound you are looking for.

I’d say first, you should check out some singer-song writers that everyone seems to love. Elliot Smith (look at 3hive above for MP3s) is a classic mention, but he is far more darker, far more mellow at times than the Shins. Still, worth a mention.

If you just want fun, poppy, amazing stuff, look no further than Tilly and the Wall. Mellow, upbeat, fun - their precussion is a tap dancer, for instance. Try “Let it Rain” and “Bessa”, I’d say.

I suppose I should by now mention Belle and Sebastion, which from little I’ve heard is some what similar, but I am not as familar with them as with others.

The Robot Ate Me might do wonders for ya’, or you just might hate it. Think the Shins, only slightly slower, sometimes more complex. “On Vacation” is probably your best bet out of those listed.

Finally, there are many bands which I can guess you’d like based on everyone else’s preferences who also happen to like the Shins, but they share nothing in common with them. Continue with an open mind…

Beat Happening - Cute simple love songs, although none on that page I can recommend above others they have done

Bright Eyes - Sometimes pretenious, sometimes entirely unlistenable, but also at times fairly good. Try to listen to “Waste of Paint” or “Bowl of Oranges” sometime (see the “JR” website above)

Neutral Milk Hotel - No MP3s online that I’m aware of (try Pandora), but they are an Indie staple. Most people love them, but there are a few who hate them entirely.

Devendra Banhart - Really, really folk. Mostly laid back and mellow, he can find build a tune out of anything.

Postal Service - Another indie staple. Off the label as the Shins, their one little record has a cult following rival only to Neutral Milk Hotel.

Iron and Wine - They covered Postal Service’s “Such Great Heights” for Garden State. He is superb mellowness.

Then, here are some random names I don’t feel like getting links for now, so I suppose type them into Pandora: Arcade Fire, Wolf Parade, Architecture in Helsinki, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Mountain Goats, the Unicorns, and the Winks.

That should get you started. I’ll expand on anything you need, provide histories if you want them, or will give more recommendations on request. I’m a huge, huge fan of indie music, and the Shins are just another one of my favorite bands.

I’ll also suggest to really stick with something you may think you will like, because probably 60% of the music I love the most I didn’t like on the first couple of listens. Paradoxial, I know, but the truth.

12

All great recommendations as well. Belle and Sebastian are one of my favorite bands of all time. You can’t go wrong with most of their albums, although I personally favor If You’re Feeling Sinister and The Boy With the Arab Strap. I also like Elliott Smith, the Mountain Goats, the Postal Service (a side-project of the frontman of Death Cab For Cutie, with help from the frontwoman of Rilo Kiley, another terrific band worth recommending here), and the little I’ve heard from Iron and Wine, Bright Eyes, and Tilly and the Wall (who are very Rilo Kiley-like, now that I think about it).

13

What I find funny about the Postal Service is that I absolutely love that album (Give Up), but am not a big fan of Death Cab or Dntel (Jimmy Tamborello, who does the music on the album). I guess it’s definitely a case of the whole being greater than the sum of the parts.