Diamond in the Rough

"Chutes Too Narrow" is an excellent set, one that continually jumps into my changer. The upbeat pop sound of the melodies crosscut with the darker lyrics to create a dynamic tension that is continually intriguing. "Young Pilgrims" is at the top of my favorite tracks from 2003. When James Mercer sings, "Of course I was raised to gather courage from those lofty tales so tried & true; and if you're able, I'd suggest it because modern thought can get the best of you," it's elegantly at odds with the pessimism that wants to "grab the yoke from the pilot and fly the whole mess into the sea." It's a stellar track. "Gone for Good" is equally classic with the "I find a fatal flaw in the logic of love" chorus being incredibly catchy. "Kissing the Lipless" builds dramatically with Mercer's guitar jabbing the melody like a cattle prod. "Fighting in a Sack" blows by like a freight train, "So let's abandon that track and leave our fathers fighting in a sack cause we are way too wise-a*sed for that." There are no weak tracks. This disc by the Shins is one of the year's very best! Enjoy!

A Kick In The Shins!

I am a fan of good music and when I say good music, I mean music that is not played on the radio or MTV. You won't hear The Shins on either because they are quite frankly, too good. This album is so good it hurts. The only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 was because the album is one song away from being a masterpiece. This is an album that gets better and better with each listen until you realize you have stumbled upon the most overlooked, most underappreciated album of the decade. The album would best be described as 70's type acoustic pop made for today. If you are a fan of acoustic music don't read the rest, go ahead and add it to your collection. You won't be disappointed.
Songs to listen to are "So Says I" (the best track, one you could listen to again and again), "Young Pilgrims" (an acoustic gem), "Kissing the Lipless" (take this one to the beach), "Saint Simon" (my personal favorite, a mellow head bobber), "Pink Bullets" (take a trip back to the seventies on this smooth acoustic 'wail' of a ride) and "Gone for Good" (what every hit country song should aspire to be) If it weren't for "Turn a Square", the only throw away song on the CD (but you may like it anyway) I'd say this is the absolute best CD I've ever heard. And I've heard a lot. At the end of the CD "Those to Come" will remind you it's time to go back to song 1 and listen to it all over again.

This is really, really good

Ok, when I picked this cd up, I knew absolutely nothing about it. It's possible that I'd read a review for it in Rolling Stone, but the point is that I bought this cd on vague curiosity alone. If vague curiosity has ever been rewarded, it was that day.
If I had to choose a genre in which to place this album, I'd have to think about it for a long time and then throw up my hands and say "the really good music genre." Each song seems to have some kind of formula -- there's always an acoustic guitar, and almost always some drums, and every once in a while a new instrument will make a cameo. Other than that, every song is easily discernable from the others on the album, somewhat of a rarity in my experience.
The real treat here is James Mercer's lyricism, which does a brilliant job of not only providing each song with its own mood and story, but also serving the song as an instrument in itself -- the sounds of the words he sings are just important to the song as the pitch of Mercer's voice.
All in all, Chutes Too Narrow is an excellent cd that exceeds all expectations -- it did for me, anyway.