Word: musically
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...Harvard College American Music Association
...unexpected pairing. Burton's music tends toward the funky side - a bit of hip-hop here, a few tape loops there - whereas the Shins are the melodic band skinny kids in Converse sneakers name-drop if they want to sound sensitive. "People tend to be split on this album," says Burton by phone from his Los Angeles home. "They either think it sounds like what they'd guess the two of us together would sound like, or they say it wasn't like anything they expected...
According to Burton, it sounds pretty much as billed. "We chose 'Broken Bells' because the music sounded like that," he explains. He and Mercer make use of hand claps, drumbeats, harmonized vocals and the kind of soothing melodies that get stuck in your head for days. The album's opener, "The High Road," mixes fluid, head-bobbing rhythms with Mercer's somber lyrics for a bittersweet feeling that continues throughout the record. The music won't blow your mind, but it's a solid effort with several standout moments...
...increase the mystery. And they're touring with the same sort of restraint. Burton and Mercer promise a follow-up album and a full U.S. tour, but only a handful of shows have been scheduled. "There are always so many expectations," says Burton. "We're just trying to make music that we really like...
...booth to bleep her in five seconds, when she'll mouth an expletive between "This is" and "great." Then she'll make fun of one of her co-winners for not showing enough excitement onstage, since he's British. And when the guy in the booth starts to play music to drown her out, she'll call him out by name and union local number and tell him he can't do this to a fellow sound mixer. Then, even though I told her not to about 20 times, I'm pretty sure she'll thank...