Sub Pop Records

BIO

IF SHINS ALBUMS COULD TALK: A STORY IN 3 PARTS

ix. Introduction
Our story begins in Albuquerque, NM, in 1996. Brought together by a genuine love of pop music – and subsequent eschewal of college aspirations – singer/guitarist James Mercer, drummer Jesse Sandoval, keyboardist Marty Crandall and bassist Dave Hernandez formed The Shins. Mercer had taught himself to play the guitar as a teenager, while listening to bands like My Bloody Valentine and Echo & The Bunnymen. With time, he developed a more pronounced interest in ‘60s pop and the art of well-crafted songwriting. Mercer’s aesthetic, paired with the like-minded sensibilities of his bandmates, gave rise to this most friendly troupe of disbelieving pop heroes. And little did they know, The Shins would soon provide ample shit to hit the proverbial fan.

After seeing the band’s San Francisco show (in the midst of their tour opening for Modest Mouse), Sub Pop CEO Jonathan Poneman was smitten. And in 2001 – The Shins spoke their very first words.

I. Oh! Inverted World
2001’s Oh! Inverted World hurtled towards jaded, unsuspecting music fans at warp speed. The Shins’ unique pop sensibility was fresh, immediate, weird and exquisite – a cacophony of melodic intricacy tempered by a quirky, childlike enthusiasm. Recorded mostly in Mercer’s loft and Crandall’s basement, it became the little album that could – and would – turn indie-rock on its head. The Shins had arrived.

II. Chutes Too Narrow
If Oh! Inverted World came directly at you, then 2003’s Chutes Too Narrow kindly invited you in. In 2002, Mercer and Sandoval relocated to Portland, with Crandall soon to follow. In the summer of 2003, they started tracking new songs in Mercer’s basement studio –…