"Wincing the Night Away" Review

‘Wincing’ with The ShinsAlbum Review
by Scott Bolohan
Staff Writer

More so than most other indie bands, The Shins have defied all musical barriers. They have not only been able to reach the bearded indie kids, but also the mainstream pop fans, the emo kids with thick glasses and everyone in between. Even your parents probably like The Shins. This universal appeal has led them to become the biggest little band in the world, virtually overnight. This, combined with the three years in between their last record, has made "Wincing the Night Away" highly anticipated to say the least.

On their third release, The Shins take their sunny indie pop to new directions. The album is much darker than their past two releases. The new songs are typically melancholic at best. Instead of reproducing their old sound, The Shins seem to have used their newfound popularity to spend more time in the studio and create a complex and deeper album. But this is perhaps a welcome change for the band, who were in jeopardy of becoming predictable with their music. In fact, the best songs of the album are those that sound least like their past work.

From the opening notes of the record, it is evident that The Shins have something different in store. "Sleeping Lessons" starts with spacey keyboard vibrations and heavily distorted vocals from James Mercer, giving the song an Arcade Fire feel to it. The song slowly builds into an explosion of indie rock at its absolute best. The next track, "Australia," is a complete changeup, a song of infectious bliss, and the only really upbeat track. This is reminiscent of The Shins’ past work, a song that makes you feel good about being alive. If there was a song to change your life on this album, it would be this one.
After the completely forgetful interlude of "Pam Berry," the first single, "Phantom Limb," comes in sounding like what you would expect from The Shins, except with a noticeably melancholy feel to the song. The chorus soars as only the Shins can, particularly on lines like "This house is hardly worth the time." The song seems to drag on at the end, but it is the best fusion of old and new sounds on the album.

From there, "Wincing" takes a turn toward more experimental and decidedly darker material. "Sea Legs" has an almost hip hop beat to it, which may turn off many of the older fans. This song might show The Shins at their most creative. When the whole band chimes in to shout "sea legs" in the middle of the song, it stands as the musical apex of the album. Much in the same vein as "Sea Legs," "Split Needles" has an industrial feel to it, with a repeated drum line and looped synths. Mercer’s strong vocals make the song stand among "Wincing’s" best.

"Red Rabbits" is much slower and the heavy use of synths in the background make the song feel like it was recorded in a cave with dripping water all around. The orchestration that appears toward the end of the song is gut wrenchingly beautiful. However, the song never really reaches the expected peak. It is an interesting listen nonetheless.

The last half of the album is more of a grab bag. "Turn Me On" and "Girl Sailor" sound much alike and have The Shins in transition from their pop ditties to their new melancholy feel. This leaves the songs caught in limbo and neither end up very good. "Black Wave" is the darkest song of theirs to date. It is more of a quiet atmospheric song, with Radiohead influenced synths and acoustic guitar over a subdued Mercer’s vocals. It’s a perfect song for the iPod in the winter. The album closes out with the calm "A Comet Appears," an almost hopeful ending to an album with so many twists and turns.

While "Wincing" is by far the least accessible of The Shins records, they made some brilliant strides toward a more well-rounded sound. The fans expecting "New Slang 2" are certainly in for a surprise, but this is The Shins strongest album as a whole. With "Wincing," the Shins have created a record that pushes the boundaries of what indie pop can be.

Score:
3.5/4.0