The Shins, the Warfield
Tuesday the Shins were on the hump night of their three-day stand at the Warfield. The evening opened with Viva Voce, a Portland pair with a female lead singer/guitarist, Anita, and husband Kevin on drums, acoustic guitar, and harmonica (on one song, he played all three simultaneously, which impressed this klutz). They combine sweet, harmonious vocals with rocking-out guitar--as their opening song declared, "We Do Not Fuck Around." They're on Barsuk (Death Cab for Cutie, Rilo Kiley, John Vanderslice, etc.) and will be playing Sasquatch and Lollapalooza this summer.
I don't have to tell you the Shins are awesome, right? You've already seen them, own Wincing the Night Away and the older records, have at least a dozen of indie rock's catchiest melodies stuck in your head. Well then, I won't go into detail. I love a band that busts out the la-la-las, the handclaps, the oh-whoa-oh harmonies, any of the silly, Metallica-would-never stuff that makes a pop song infectious. (On a similar tip, kudos to the Spinto Band for its use of the kazoo in "Brown Boxes.") What joy to sing along with the audience to the la-da-da-dums of "Saint Simon," a song that makes me want to wave my arms in the air no matter how many times I've heard it.
Best shout from the balcony: "I like the consistency of your music." James Mercer: "'I like the consistency...'--the texture?" Another person in the balcony: "I like the flavor."
For the first encore, the Shins played "Breathe" from The Dark Side of the Moon--now there's a cover I didn't expect. So, in one week, I have now heard two Pink Floyd encores, the first being Robyn Hitchcock's "See Emily Play." Coincidence or trend? Whichever, I'm enjoying it, and I'm throwing down the gauntlet to other bands coming to SF in April and May (c'mon, Brakes!): hit us with "Astronomy Domine" or a track of your choosing. Bonus points if you reproduce the quadraphonic sound.
