The Shins played the final date of their recent tour Monday, May 16 at the Crystal Ballroom in their hometown of Portland, Oregon. I gained access to the show at the last minute and attended with a friend, happy to be able to catch them at the end of their tour. I first became acquainted with The Shins through the movie Garden State and had since picked up their two albums, Chutes Too Narrow and Oh, Inverted World. I loved the music and wanted to see how they stacked up live.
The Shins' popularity has grown quickly of late, with a definite push from their presence in Garden State. They create upbeat, fun pop songs that burrow into the brain, taking up residence and emerging at the strangest times. There's a lightness to the sound that's not always reflected in the lyrics, but that is immensely appealing and very catchy. Chutes Too Narrow, their most recent album, has a particularly light-hearted and playful feel to it at times, though the songs are not fluff pieces, either.
However, there's a certain lowkey sense to the music that might leave one to wonder what they would be like live—to be curious about just how much energy they might be able to bring to a show. I wondered this myself, having never seen them perform in concert, but I was in no way disappointed with the show Monday night. Perhaps they were particularly pumped up by the fact that this was the final show and that they were back performing in Portland, but The Shins showed up with an abundance of energy and enthusiasm, tackling their set without the slightest bit of hesitation.
It started, though, with The Brunettes-a New Zealand band accompanying The Shins on their tour. They proved to be a great fit for The Shins, offering poppy and upbeat music-almost childlike in certain songs. There were times that their music became almost too ideal, bordering on silly, but overall they put on a wonderful performance that was welcomed and cheered by the crowd. Their final, intricate song brought the set to an exhilirating close, setting the stage perfectly, so to speak, for the main course.
And then came The Shins and the crowd went wild, thrilled to have the hometown band on stage. They launched into their set and James Mercer blanketed the eager crowd with his clear and melodic voice, stretching throughout the venue. The audience cheered, clapped, sang along and swayed and pressed themselves against significant others, enraptured by The Shins. No one could mistake this band as anything less than well-loved and surely no one could be surprised that they were a Portland favorite.
Article comments
1 - Douglas Mays
You know, the Shins are pretty cool. I had always known about them playing the scenester venues in Seattle (Portland/Seattle, the same thing, cities holding hand) then I saw them here in Seattle the night before the above reviewed concert. . Rough on sound because they sold 5000 tickets where the echo factor in the upper seating was uh, surreal. Those on the floor had it better.
My sister saw them in Portland also. A smaller ballroom venue. She said it was like night and day.
The Shins had this one song that had an instrumental break with layered keyboard and guitar abstractions mixed with progressive rhythm changes. Blows my mind. Right there I became convinced that these guys are cool. They have and artistic ability.
Anyway, keep an eye out for these guys and give them a definate 'thumbs up".
peaceloveguidance.
2 - Eric Berlin
I heard a song by The Shins on the radio the other day and really dug it. Could it be the one you're talking about, Douglas?
Nice job on this review, Joel.
3 - Douglas Mays
Eric, you know, I'm not sure. I actually have never heard a Shins record before. I just saw them. OK, a guest list situation. But that worked as it turned me on to them.