Port of Morrow (album)

with Danger Mouse (pictured) In 2007, The Shins released their third studio album, Wincing the Night Away, which received rave reviews from critics and debuted at number two on the Billboard 200. Sandoval instead told The Portland Mercury he was "unequivocally fired" from the group. Sandoval elaborated on Mercer's decision, noting that "When I think about this, probably if James really had complete say in it, he would have killed the Shins." For Port of Morrow, The Shins left their longtime label, Sub Pop, for Mercer's own label, Aural Apothecary. ==Artwork and recording==

Producer Greg Kurstin had a particular influence on Port of Morrow, encouraging Mercer to experiment in the studio. Former Shins bandmates Marty Crandall and Dave Hernandez appear as guest musicians on Port of Morrow. Feeling that both musicians have a certain tone and style that would suit a song, Mercer simply called them up to ask regardless of any possible acrimony. Regarding the album's artwork, artist Jacob Escobedo stated, "After working with James Mercer on Broken Bells, he came to me about this Shins album. He sent references of old Eastern European book covers with skulls and psychedelic faces. So I explored three different rounds of creative. Each time getting closer to what he was looking for. In the final round, I scanned a cross cut of a rock which formed that mountain and put this spirit made of feathers on top. He immediately loved it, but thought it needed a Hopi-inspired mask because he grew up in New Mexico. So he sent me all this great inspiration and it slowly evolved into that cover. If you look closely we’ve filled that smoke coming down the mountain with naked ladies at James’ request. [...] It's pure Hopi psychedelic spookiness." ==Music==

Composition Port of Morrow incorporates a palette of vintage-inspired sounds inspired by Mercer and producer Greg Kurstin's upbringing in Germany in the 1970s. The German imagery found on Port of Morrow was inspired by avant-garde pop, artists such as Faust and Can, as well as Brian Eno's production work. Spin called Port of Morrow a "brighter, poppier beast than previous ventures, filled with spacey '70s keyboards and surprisingly straightforward lyrics." "The Rifle's Spiral", the album's first track, is written from the perspective of a man who finances suicide bombings, and contains elements of Mercer's distrust and fear of religion which can fuel violence. "Fall of '82" is directly inspired by events from Mercer's own life, detailing his rough transition from his childhood in Germany to New Mexico. The trip resulted in a period of anxiety that Mercer was able to overcome when his oldest sister, whom he regarded as both motherly and "cool" enough to recall the "weirdness of adolescence," moved back in with the family. Upon the album's release, Mercer stated that he had not yet visited Port of Morrow: "I looked it up online the other night because people are asking me now over here, so I looked it up. It’s this industrial port and very boring." ==Singles==

• On January 9, 2012, the first single, "Simple Song", was released via the band's website. ==Reception==

Port of Morrow was released to generally favorable reviews from music critics. Paste was arguably the most positive, calling the record "just so utterly satisfying," elaborating that "Port of Morrow immediately hooks the listener and holds on tight right up until the last few seconds." The Boston Phoenix called it "arguably Mercer's and the Shins' most satisfying achievement," and Entertainment Weekly heralded it as "the band's best album in nearly a decade." Q called Port of Morrow an "album rich in kaleidoscopic colour to contrast the diluted greys of its sleeve, marked with the expert touch of true masters of their art." Pitchfork described the record as "a triumphant return from a project that once risked being reduced to an indie-went-mainstream tagline," opining that, "It's the perfect distillation of the Shins' back catalog [...] But in other ways, its colorful, detail-oriented approach sets it apart from anything Mercer's done before." In contrast, BBC Music felt it lacked the unity of a central band, calling it a "record with so much clever and excitable beauty, yet strangely disappointing." Uncut wrote that "The pair's [Mercer and Kurstin] pop instincts ultimately prevail over more esoteric ambitions," and Slant Magazine felt Port of Morrow less important than the band's other works, but did not rule out the likelihood that "many of its subtle strengths will grow more powerful with time." The Chicago Tribune felt the multi-layered sound ("sonic forget-me-nots") did not work in the album's favor, while Alternative Press felt it unchallenging, but still fun: "Its low-key loveliness makes it great for dinner parties where the company is almost as cool as Mercer's pre-Port track record." The A.V. Club wrote that "Mercer has made what amounts to a solo record and needlessly attached it to a band identity that he's outgrown," ==Track listing==

The Shins • James Mercer – vocals, guitars, additional drums (track 1), glockenspiel (track 3), lap steel guitar and percussion (track 5) • Greg Kurstin – keyboards, guitars (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6, 7), bass (tracks 1, 5, 6, 8, 10), piano (tracks 2, 4, 9, 10), organ (tracks 4, 9, 10), percussion (tracks 6, 10), drums (track 8) • Joe Plummer – drums (tracks 3, 4, 6, 7, 9) • Ron Lewis – bass (tracks 2, 3, 4, 7, 9) Additional musicians • Dave Hernandez – lead guitar (tracks 2, 3, 4) • Eric D. Johnson – piano (track 3), background vocals (tracks 3, 4), additional keyboards (track 10) • Janet Weiss – drums (tracks 1, 2, 10) • Nik Freitas – lead guitar (tracks 6, 7, 9) • Marty Crandall – additional keyboards (track 5) • Nathaniel Walcott – trumpet and flugelhorn (track 8) Recording personnel • Greg Kurstin – producer, recording • James Mercer – co-producer • Jesse Shatkin – additional engineer • Graeme Gibson – additional engineer • Rich Costey – mixing • Brian Lucey – mastering • Jacob Escobedo – artwork, layout and design ==Charts==

Weekly charts Year-end charts ==References==