Review of The Shins Latest Album: Wincing the Night Away

Fans of indie rock super stars the Shins have been deeply divided on the band's best album since their sophomore effort, Chutes Too Narrow, was released in 2003. While many fans preferred the stripped down debut that was Oh, Inverted World (made famous by Zach Braff's film "Garden State"), just as many preferred the more evident production value in Chutes songs like "Saint Simon."

It's clear that with the release of Wincing the Night Away, their third album, the Shins have a great deal of pressure to create an album that lives up to the expectations of their devoted but anxious fan base.

Wincing the Night Away opens with "Sleeping Lessons," a futuristic lullaby that was at one point a candidate for the album's titular track. The song morphs into a more traditional rock track shortly before its ending as frontman James Mercer sings in his unmistakable, shrill voice, "Just put yourself in my new shoes/And see that I do what I do," perhaps to address the mounting pressures the surprise of fame has brought.

"Australia" and "Phantom Limb," the second track and first single (respectively), are the stand out pieces of the album. "Australia" features the most upbeat instrumental performances ever heard from the band with enough "la la's" and vocal harmonies to make fans feel like they're listening to a Mates of State album.

The sweeping melody of "Phantom Limb" makes for a great first single as Mercer croons cryptically about small town life during a winter freeze. Mercer is just as apt to sing low and sweet as he is to slip into a high pitched, urgent voice, and this song is proof of the prior.

Unfortunately the Shins have put their best material at the front end of Wincing, leaving the later half to feel a little barren. Placing an emphasis on beat over melody, "Sea Legs" is an interesting departure from the band's normal fare. Still the song drones on without ever going anywhere, leaving the listener feeling like it could have been so much more.

"Turn on Me," an average, heard-it-before kind of indie pop song, falls flat both lyrically and instrumentally. "Girl Sailor" has a little more substance but sounds too similar to "Phantom Limb" to really take seriously.

Overall the album's lyrics seem a little too straightforward, lacking the mystery that made the Shins' first two releases so beautiful. The overwhelming theme (lullabies of the sea, for lack of a better phrase) should have brought out Mercer's absolute best. Yet, at points things seem a little phoned in.

That's not to say the songwriting has gotten utterly sloppy. In "Australia" Mercer and the boys harmonize "Dare to be one of us, girl/ Faced with the android's conundrum," a good line, but it doesn't leave the listener with a lyrical puzzle to solve as earlier songs did.

Expecting every musician to consistently release albums better than the last is na've. Wincing the Night Away is unlikely to divide the Shins' fan camp as evenly as the debate over the quality of their first two albums did. But even if the album is a bit on the average side, the band should be commended for branching off a bit from their expected sound and not buckling under the pressure created by the "Garden State" soundtrack.

3 of 5