Shins Shine

Back in the old crescent & crossbones days, I used to do much more in the way of music reviews, along with the still chugging along (barely) book and movie reviews (Recently Read and Reel Reviews, respectively). I abandoned that habit, both because I just don't dive into the new music pool very often, and because I came to the conclusion that I don't have much to offer in the way of music criticism. It's easy to say you like, or don't like, a song or album, but it's not nearly as easy as it is with books and movies to say why you should or shouldn't like any particular piece or collection of music. To me, it really does come down to a matter of taste, and who's to argue about that?

Port of Morrow by The Shins, available now.

Nevertheless, once in a while a new musical work comes along that just compels me to speak up--and that happened earlier this year with the release of the latest from The Shins, Port of Morrow. I've been a Shins fan ever since Chutes Too Narrow, or perhaps even earlier with the big breakthrough hit "New Slang" in the movie Garden State. The arrival of Wincing The Night Away back in 2007 cemented The Shins as my favorite "now band"--a hip, current outfit I could point to as at least one example of a group I like that is relevant today, to complement my gigantic stable of favorites from back in the day.

Imagine then, my disappointment when over four years passed with nary a whisper from The Shins. Of course, front man James Mercer--at this point, Mercer is The Shins--had a foray a couple of years ago with Broken Bells, but the one song I heard from that project ("The High Road") never sparked for me. Soon enough, I resigned myself to the inevitable and assumed I'd have to be satisfied with a couple of really good albums, and leave it at that.

Thankfully, I was wrong. Port of Morrow came along back in March, heralded by the pre-release single "Simple Song"...and I wasn't quite sure what to make of it. I could tell, on first listen, that there were a few songs that would grow on me, but nothing leaped out the way, for instance, "Gone for Good" or "Girl Sailor" had from the previous albums. I was almost willing to chalk it up as a loss--another album from a favorite artist that, for some reason or other, just bombed with me, like Imaginary Kingdom from Tim Finn. (Sorry, Tim. IK's no Before and After, that's for sure.)

Eventually, though, I had the good sense to burn the album onto a CD--they're still useful for some things--and started playing the thing in my car as I drove. The breakthrough came, not as any snap! "Eureka!" moment, but more as a slow-motion immersion into the heart of the music. After numerous listenings, during which I could feel the songs growing on me, I'm ready to declare Port of Morrow a triumph, maybe even the album of the year--even better than the recent release Wrecking Ball from my longtime favorite, Bruce Springsteen. Mercer's words and music offer something so unique that you really do need to give them repeated hearings before you can understand what's going on. It's only after hearing these songs enough to get the echoes ringing inside your head that tunes such as "For A Fool," "Fall of '82," and "40 Mark Strasse"--the song trio that delivers as the album's late, illustrious crescendo--can have their greatest impact. Their 'bright melancholy,' paired with more ebullient tracks like "Bait and Switch" and "Pariah King," run the listener through an entire gamut of musical expression like few other artists working today can achieve.

So my sincere thanks to James Mercer for giving us at least one more piece of greatness to add to the Shins' catalog. Or, to counterpoint the plaintive cry that ends both "Pariah King" and the album, "Yes, Jimmy, yes."