Fresh from Albuquerque, New Mexico The Shins have returned with their first studio effort in 5 years, Port of Morrow. The follow up to 2007's Wincing The Night Away finds the indie rockers returning to their sound that put them on the indie-rock radar and continuing to cement their status as one of the preeminent bands out there in the scene today.
The album opens up with "The Rifle's Spiral", an upbeat, melodic opener that makes way for lead singer James Mercer's comforting and vivacious vocal presence that gives all of The Shins songs some pep and zest all the way through. The song segues way into the disc's first single, "Simple Song" starting off with a steady drum pattern before James's vocals kick in and set the tone for the rest of the song including a full fledged guitar onslaught. "Bait and Switch" continues to set the album's tone with ethereal rhythms and James's comforting vocal presence contributing to an upbeat and vivacious tune all around. "September" has an acoustic feel to it and showcases the band's diversity of crafting songs in various tempos and highlighting the band's strengths as musicians.
The disc's second half gets underway with my favorite song off the album, "No Way Down" a perfect balance of well rounded guitar riffs and James's indelible vocal abilities contributing to a harmonic track omnipresent on all fronts here. "Fall of '82" brings it down a couple of notches and presents a full featured track that best exemplifies all the skills that each of the band members possess and are capable of bringing something to the table each time. The album's finale gets underway with "40 Mark Strasse" a beautiful, acoustic based song that feels comfortable from the get go and just flat out sounds good all the way through without any flaws whatsoever. The disc concludes with the album's title track, an aural, musically sensual delight with vivid, flowing rhythms and James's incredible vocals adding a great deal to the track and allowing the album to close out on a high note, much like the same way it came in. When The Shins first gained prominence in the music scene back in 2004 thanks to their song "New Slang" being featured in the movie Garden State, the band's fortunes have skyrocketed since then, with James briefly hooking up with Danger Mouse to form the side project Broken Bells in 2010, and have become one of the most popular indie bands in music today and have exemplified what it is to be a band full living out their dreams and their capabilities as musicians.
Overall, a well accomplished effort from The Shins, who have returned unfazed after a 5 year layoff and have returned refreshed, focused, and ready to take the music scene by notice once again. Definitely recommended!
Album Score: 4/5
Track Listing:
- The Rifle's Spiral
- Simple Song
- It's Only Life
- Bait and Switch
- September
- No Way Down
- For A Fool
- Fall of '82
- 40 Mark Strasse
- Port of Morrow
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