The Shins

The Shins' bittersweet, melodic mix of '60s psych-pop, folk, and power pop -- and James Mercer's elliptically emotional lyrics -- make them one of indie rock's definitive acts. The giddy, twenty-something heartache of 2001's Oh, Inverted World generated a landslide of critical acclaim that continued with the more polished sonics of 2003's Chutes Too Narrow. A prominent spot in Zach Braff's 2004 indie film sensation Garden State skyrocketed the band's popularity, making 2007's Wincing the Night Away a Grammy nominated, U.S. Top Ten hit. Soon after, Mercer branched out, working with producer and multi-instrumentalist Danger Mouse as Broken Bells, an experimental duo whose approach rubbed off on the Shins ' layered 2012 album Port of Morrow. As he juggled numerous projects, Mercer always returned to the Shins, and 2017's Heartworms and its companion The Worm's Heart reflected his devotion to reinvigorating classic sounds. The Shins came about in 1996 as the side project of Mercer's primary band, Flake. He formed Flake in 1992 with drummer Jesse Sandoval, keyboardist Marty Crandall, and bassist Neal Langford; they eventually changed their name to Flake Music, releasing several singles and a well-received album, When You Land Here, It's Time to Return. Soon after that album's release, Mercer and Sandoval formed the Shins as a change of pace. With Mercer as the Shins' primary songwriter, the group developed a more focused, crafted sound inspired by the psychedelic pop of the Elephant 6 collective and the tuneful songs of the 1950s and '60s as opposed to Flake Music's charming, if somewhat rambling, collaborative style. Crandall, as well as Scared of Chaka's Dave Hernandez and Ron Skrasek, filled out the Shins' lineup; however, Hernandez and Skrasek left after a short while to concentrate on their main project. By 1999, Flake Music essentially disbanded and Langford also joined the Shins. With a couple of 7"s on Omnibus -- 1998's "Nature Bears a Vacuum" and 2000's "When I Goose-Step" -- under their belts, the Shins embarked on a tour with Modest Mouse. Sub Pop's Jonathan Poneman caught the San Francisco date of the tour and asked the Shins to contribute a single to the label's Single of the Month Club, which eventually led to an offer to release their single "New Slang" and their debut album, June 2001's Oh, Inverted World. The album's giddy, wistful songs struck a chord with critics and indie rock fans alike, and Oh, Inverted World was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA in 2023 (making it the third Sub Pop album to sell over a million copies in the U.S. along with Nirvana's Bleach and the Postal Service's Give Up). The Shins spent the rest of 2001 touring with acts such as Preston School of Industry and Red House Painters, while the release of the singles "Know Yr Onion!" and "The Past and the Pending" kept their success going into 2002. After moving to Portland, Oregon, Mercer set up a home studio where the Shins recorded their second album with Hernandez returning on bass. Appearing in October 2003, Chutes Too Narrow was mixed by Phil Ek and boasted a more polished, guitar-driven sound and wider-ranging songwriting. The album continued the Shins' critical acclaim and reflected their growing commercial success, marking their chart debut when it reached number 86 on the 200 Albums Chart in the U.S., where it was certified gold by the RIAA. The band's profile increased dramatically when actor/director Zach Braff included several of their songs in his 2004 movie Garden State, with the sales of Oh, Inverted World and Chutes Too Narrow doubling after the film's release. That year, the band also appeared on an episode of the fourth season of Gilmore Girls. For the Shins' third album, the band recorded at Mercer's home studio as well as with Ek and Joe Chiccarelli, whom Mercer met through the Portland lounge-pop group Pink Martini. The band's more collaborative recording process extended to the eclectic sounds they touched on January 2007's Wincing the Night Away, which ranged from funk and hip-hop to Hawaiian folk and synth pop. Selling over 100,000 copies in its first week, the album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 Albums chart, making it Sub Pop's highest-charting album to date (the label's previous peak was with the Afghan Whigs' 1996 LP Black Love, which reached number 79). It was also nominated for a Grammy for Best Alternative Album and, like Chutes Too Narrow, was certified gold in the U.S.. Following the tour in support of the album, the Shins took a break, and Mercer started his collaboration with producer/multi-instrumentalist Danger Mouse (aka Brian Burton) as Broken Bells. Their project's 2010 self-titled debut album was a Top Ten hit in the U.S. and was nominated for a Best Alternative Album award at the 2011 Grammy Awards. When the Shins returned with the Greg Kurstin-produced Port of Morrow in March 2012, Mercer's backing band featured fellow songwriters Jessica Dobson and Richard Swift, Modest Mouse drummer Joe Plummer, and Crystal Skulls' Yuuki Matthews. Released through Mercer's own Aural Apothecary label, the album paired Mercer's reflections on his life with poised, electronic-based arrangements; it reached number three on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart. Though Mercer returned to Broken Bells for 2014's After the Disco, he also worked with the Shins, contributing the song "So Now What" to the soundtrack of Braff's 2014 film Wish I Was Here. That year also saw the reissue of Flake Music's When You Land Here, It's Time to Return. In 2016, the Shins released a cover of the Beatles' "The Word" that appeared in the Netflix series Beat Bugs and "Dead Alive," the first single from their fifth album, March 2017's Heartworms. Produced by Mercer, the album was a conscious return to the Shins' early sound that peaked at number 20 on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart. The following January, the band issued The Worms Heart, a "flipped" version of Heartworms that reversed the album's track list and featured fast renditions of its slow songs and vice-versa. In 2019, they released the songs "Waimanalo" and "Trapped by the Sea" in honor of former bandmate Swift, who died in 2018. A stand-alone track, "The Great Divide," appeared in September 2020. The following April saw the release of the 20th anniversary edition of Oh, Inverted World, and the band played the album in its entirety on their 2022 tour. In October 2023, the 20th anniversary edition of Chutes Too Narrow appeared, featuring remastering by Adam Ayan and custom die-cut artwork.
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