These are songs to fall in love to, to grow along with, and to share with friends in need of a life-change.
Port of Morrow, the Shins' fourth studio album in 11 years, is a triumphant return from a project that once risked being reduced to an indie-went-mainstream tagline.
Frontman James Mercer ... and his new mates have conjured the band's best album in nearly a decade.
This collection of songs, though, is strong enough to endure even the most ardent attempts at mainstreaming.
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.
Questions of semantics and authenticity aside, Port of Morrow's songs are compelling enough to keep most fans listening and enjoying.
Port of Morrow has more of a studio-sculpture auteurist vibe than ever.
Most of the songs on Port of Morrow seem slack and not especially purposive.
Challenging it's not, but its low-key loveliness makes it great for dinner parties where the company is almost as cool as Mercer's pre-Port track record.
Port Of Morrow seems a unnecessary asterix on an already successful career, and one that I fear future Mercer albums will mimic.
The Shins were once billed as a band that would change your life—Morrow sounds like a change of life.
Port of Morrow is certainly at its most impactful when it is stripped bare and we’re left with a man and his guitar, but sadly it’s a fleeting occurrence.
Smart and anthemic, "40 Mark Strasse" and the Waterboys-channelling "Simple Song" provide ample evidence of why Mercer's songs are so widely cherished. But there remains something a little clinical about the efficiency with which he dispatches these studies in perky wistfulness.
The Shins as we knew them are no more, and though Port of Morrow introduces some interesting new angles to view Mercer’s songcraft, most of them won’t start any new indie revolutions.
As ‘Port Of Morrow’ develops it becomes ever more knowingly arena-folk, shedding The Shins’ more esoteric edge.
While there’s no doubt that Port of Morrow is well crafted, then, it fails because it is ultimately unmoving, and what Mercer has gained in style and execution is overshadowed by the album’s lack of either invention or sincerity.
Port of Morrow captures Mercer in a different era, and although questionable at times, it’s a fruitful adventure that requires a little swinging and paddling.
Port of Morrow seems much more a step sideways than forward for Mercer, not so much a dramatic comeback but more a compilation of greatest hits masquerading as new songs.
‘Port Of Morrow’ is a glorious and confident return, even if it lacks a little darkness at times.
Port of Morrow‘s problem isn’t how it sounds, but rather what it’s saying—which, whatever it is, doesn’t have a whole lot at stake.
Take Heed, Everyone: Shins Have Inoffensive New Songs. Plenty Of Respectable Tedium. Overall: Fair. Mercer Oughta Revisit Resplendent Oh, Inverted World.
I vibe with this album more than their debut. I have a fair amount of nostalgia for Simple Song as I remember when that song came out when I was younger and it was one of my favorites. Going back and listening to the album was oddly refreshing and I remembered how much I enjoyed this album
While I certainly enjoyed Port of Morrow, a lot of this album has a tendency to feel slightly same-y at times sadly. I think the majority of the songs here are good, but only one song on here actually stuck out as great to me and that was the opener, The Rifle's Spiral. That track was what I was hoping the rest of the album would be like, instrumentally the song is wonderful, there's a lot going on but it all works surprisingly well, the lyrics are vague and almost adventurous in a sense, and ... read more
There are so many good songs on this album. The problem? They all sound pretty similar, causing most of the songs to not be particularly memorable.
So while most of these songs are good individually, this album could have used a lot more variety in order to take it to the next level.
This album sounds very simple and bland the whole way through. With its one single, Simple Song, being the worst offender. That song… don’t even get me started.
Alright, you got me started. Holy fucking shit why did they throw the song in the garbage???? It’s got great lyrics, some good guitar, and a nice vibe overall. But the song literally doesn’t change anything the whole way through. After about a minute it feels like they just copied and pasted the ... read more
cute soundtrack to early 10s romcom wearing a beret lol.
listened to a fair lot as a teen. the tracks that stuck w me were; simple song, it's only life and for a fool. 'for a fool' reminds me of the book the song of achilles lmfao i would listen to that song and think of that book.... honestly that book was one of my first loves and changed my life. simple song reminds me of being 13/14, and the build-up i felt at 'and you feel like an ocean being warmed by the sun' and the stomach drop i'd ... read more
The first two, and even three songs on this album are incredibly strong. Simple Song is even my fav Shins song. The rest of the album is pretty disappointing for me, and places this album much lower in comparison to Wincing the Night Away. Following the first three songs, this album is far less vibrant and exciting. The memorable songs from its predecessors are absent after the first three, and its pretty forgettable. Still, Mercer's vocals are fantastic, and its pretty solid overall.
1 | The Rifle's Spiral 3:29 | 89 |
2 | Simple Song 4:15 | 91 |
3 | It's Only Life 4:01 | 79 |
4 | Bait and Switch 3:23 | 79 |
5 | September 3:33 | 75 |
6 | No Way Down 3:16 | 84 |
7 | For a Fool 3:56 | 75 |
8 | Fall Of '82 3:48 | 65 |
9 | 40 Mark Strasse 4:38 | 74 |
10 | Port of Morrow 5:49 | 66 |
#13 | / | Paste |
#22 | / | American Songwriter |
#34 | / | Gigwise |
#39 | / | Clash |
#46 | / | Pretty Much Amazing |
#48 | / | Stereogum |