Q: What could be better than a new Shins album?
A: A new collaboration between a Shins frontman and a Gorillaz/Beck producer!
Yesterday afternoon while riding in a friend's vehicle I heard the strains of a song that I didn't recognize, but that sounded an awful lot like the Shins. Excited at the prospect of a new album I hadn't heard about (but why hadn't I heard?!), I was dismayed to be told that no, it wasn't the Shins. But seconds later my disappointment surged to enthusiasm as I learned that James Mercer of the Shins—of course it was him, really now, his voice is so delightfully distinctive—had teamed up with Danger Mouse, who is half of Gnarls Barkley in addition to producing albums by Gorillaz, Beck, the Black Keys, and more.
As soon as I got home I jumped onto Amazon (sorry iTunes, but you need to figure out a way to match $7.99 downloads) and barely got through the track samples before purchasing this all-around winner. Broken Bells is basically a Shins album with added modern funk, ie, it's frickin' awesome. This is the kind of music I'm always hoping to hear, and it's rare that an album delivers top-to-bottom the way this one does. Kudos to creativity and the combining of two great talents!
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