An email from the Shins always makes me excited, especially because this one was announcing the details about their upcoming album entitled ‘Port of Morrow’, to be released next year on Aural Apothecary/Columbia Records.
The album, which was produced by Greg Kurstin and mixed by Rich Costey, contains 10 tracks and was recorded in Los Angeles and Portland during 2011.
As usual James Mercer was the only songwriter, and handles the lead vocals as the majority of instrumentation… at this point the Shins is a one-man band!
They also have some touring plans, which should be announced soon, and the lineup will be identical to the one for the concerts performed earlier this year: Yuuki Matthews (bass), Jessica Dobson (guitar), Richard Swift (keyboards) and Joe Plummer (drums).
The album is out March 2012, but we should be able to hear new music from ‘Port of Morrow’ as early as January.
How can Mercer find inspiration in an industrial infrastructure located in Oregon, it is beyond me! But I find this cover art quite interesting, like coming from a children book. Is it a goat at the top of this mountain? In any case it is the work of artist Jacob Escobedo who has worked for Broken Bells, Danger Mouse, Sleigh Bells, Vampire weekend, Gnarls Barkley and many others.
Here is the tracklist:
1. The Rifle's Spiral
2. Simple Song
3. It's Only Life
4. No Way Down
5. September
6. Bait and Switch
7. Fall of '82
8. For A Fool
9. 40 Mark Strasse
10. Port of Morrow
And here is a video from their performance at the Palladium in 2009 which is probably the first track of the album: