I've been meaning to write about The Shins' latest album release for a few weeks now, but I thought I'd save my thoughts until I'd also seen them perform it live.
To my disappointment, I only discovered The Shins relatively recently. Last November a friend of mine told me I
had to watch Garden State (which incidentally I loved and now have seen approx. five times), and The Shins figure heavily on its soundtrack.
In the film, Natalie Portman's character is a big Shins fan, and goes as far to say that listening to 'New Slang' will change your life. I wouldn't go as far to say the track is life-changing, but it is certainly life-enhancing.
To cut a long and potentially rambling story short, I quickly caught up for lost time and got my virtual hands on all their back catalogue and a pair of tickets for the London show on 29th March.
Five years since their last album, Port of Morrow, James Mercer & co. released their fifth record last month. I must have listened to the album at least 15 times, and while it's very engaging as you listen to it, I'm still struggling to pick out key songs or lyrics that really resonate with me.
Unlike earlier albums (Oh, Inverted World immediately springs to mind), Heartworms lacks urgency. Perhaps this is an obvious result of being five years in the making, but it did mean that I felt less 'sure' of myself as I headed over to the
Hammersmith Eventim Apollo last Wednesday.
Despite my initial reservations, I was blown away by the concert. When a band has an extensive back catalogue you sometimes find yourself slightly disappointed when your favourite - often obscure - song isn't played, but this was not the case.
The band selected a roughly proportionate number of songs from each album to play, starting with 'Kissing the Lipless' which captivated the crowd. Other stand out moments were 'Mine's Not a High Horse' - also from the Chutes Too Narrow album and, maybe surprisingly, 'Mildenhall' from Heartworms.
The incredible 'Caring is Creepy' was the perfect 'final' song (we all knew they had to return for 'New Slang'). Since the gig I've been listening to a lot of songs from Oh, Inverted World. I love when a concert inspires you to return back to old favourites and doesn't just try to plug the newest release.
Also, because I tend to listen to the albums while walking around, I can't always associate the track names to the song itself, so reading setlists before doesn't always help and I found myself dancing away to every song.
Another point to mention is the intricate artwork found on the Heartworms album and subsequently repeated on stage. The skull lit up in various ways which added to the whole experience, I really appreciated how much effort they put in.
Following the gig I have been listening to a mix of Heartworms and The Jesus and Mary Chain, so I've been pretty content. My initial thoughts on the album were certainly changed by the concert, and having some time to reflect has made me realise just how great a band The Shins are. I'd really like to see them again soon.
