The Shins

You gotta hear this one song. It'll change your life, I swear.

—Natalie Portman, in praise of the The Shins' 'New Slang' in Garden State

The Shins are an American indie rock band comprising singer, songwriter and guitarist James Mercer; guitarist/bassist Dave Hernandez; Eric Johnson of Fruit Bats; drummer Joe Plummer, and bassist Ron Lewis. Their sound draws on several musical genres, including pop, alternative rock, indie rock and folk. The Shins were formed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, but are now based in Portland, Oregon. They have announced a new album, Port of Morrow, and it is due out in March.

Discography:

• Oh, Inverted World (2001)
• Chutes Too Narrow (2003)
• Wincing The Night Away (2007)
• Port of Morrow (2012)

The Shins provides examples of the following tropes:

• Album Title Drop: Oh, Inverted World and Chutes Too Narrow are named for lyrics in "One By One All Day" and "Young Pilgrims" respectively.
• Break Up Song: Quite a few of them.
• Growing Up Sucks: One interpretation of "New Slang."
• I Am the Band: James Mercer.
• Last-Note Nightmare: "One By One All Day" is mostly calm...until the end, where there's a very loud, jarring chord to end the song.
• Lyrical Dissonance: All over the place.
  • Perhaps the greatest example is Australia. Perhaps the most upbeat and cheery sounding song on Wincing the Night Away belies lyrics that befit a Despair Event Horizon.
• Minimalistic Cover Art: "Oh! Inverted World"
• Mohs Scale of Rock and Metal Hardness: Usually between 1 and 3, but "So Says I" might make it as high as 5.
• Non-Appearing Title: "Know Your Onion", "Phantom Limb", and "Caring is Creepy".
• Sesame Street Cred: They've been on Yo Gabba Gabba! and contributed music to The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie soundtrack.
• Sliding Scale of Idealism vs. Cynicism: They even move up and down this in mid-song.
• Surreal Music Video: The Rifle's Spiral is a strange marriage of Edward Gorey and David Lynch. In Stop Motion.
• This Is a Song: "Simple Song"
• Word Salad Lyrics: Subverted; the lyrics seem random, but they certainly do suggest a consistent feeling. Your Mileage May Vary on exactly what that message is, though.