The Shins are an American indie rock band formed in Albuquerque, New Mexico in 1996. The band is based in Portland, Oregon and was formed by James Mercer who named the group, Flake Music, who were active from 1992 to 1999. The band released two 7" singles and a full-length album When You Land Here It's Time to Return on Omnibus Records and were touring with Modest Mouse when they were signed to Sub Pop Records. The band changed their name to the Shins and the group's first two records, Oh, Inverted World (2001) and Chutes Too Narrow (2003) performed well commercially and received critical acclaim. The single "New Slang" brought the band mainstream attention when it was featured in the 2004 film Garden State. Consequently, the band's third album, Wincing the Night Away (2007), was a major success for the group, peaking at number two on the Billboard 200 and earning a Grammy Award nomination. Following this, the Shins signed to Columbia Records and Mercer parted ways with the entire original lineup, deeming it "an aesthetic decision". Following a near five-year hiatus, Port of Morrow, the band's fourth studio album, was released in 2012. Their fifth album, Heartworms, was released in March 2017.
Links To Peel[]
Peel first played the Shins when they were originally called Flake Music in 1998, a track called Blast Valve from their 1997 album, When You Land Here, It's Time To Return. In 2001, Peel heard the band's new name, The Shins, through the Sub Pop label, where he played their New Slang single in February of that year, which later began to be licensed in a variety of media beginning in 2002, including various American television programmes and a McDonald's advert that aired during the 2002 Winter Olympics. Although the song never charted on any international charts, it became a sensation following its appearance in the film Garden State (2004), where a character referred to it as a song that "will change your life." The band saw increased record sales and notability as a result. Peel's listeners even voted the track into the 2001 Festive Fifty at the end of the year.
New Slang wasn't the only song played by Peel from the Shins. He also played other materials from the band's Oh Inverted World and Chutes Too Marrow albums, that weren't played often by radio stations or advertisers to the same level as New Slang.
Festive Fifty Entries[]
- 2001 Festive Fifty: New Slang #43
Shows Played[]
- 21 February 2001: 'New Slang (7")' (Sub Pop)
- 08 March 2001: New Slang (7") Sub Pop
- 15 March 2001 (Radio Eins): New Slang (7") Sub Pop
- 29 March 2001: New Slang (7") Sub Pop
- 24 April 2001: Caring Is Creepy (album: Oh Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 03 May 2001 (Radio Eins): Caring Is Creepy (album: Oh Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 23 May 2001: Know Your Onion (CD - Oh Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 31 May 2001 (Radio Eins): Know Your Onion (CD - Oh Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 06 June 2001: 'Girls Inform Me (CD-Oh Inverted World)' (Sub Pop)
- 13 June 2001: New Slang (LP - Oh, Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 14 June 2001 (Radio Eins): New Slang (LP - Oh, Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 20 June 2001: Know Your Onion (CD - Oh Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 24 June 2001 (BBC World Service): New Slang (LP - Oh, Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 26 July 2001 (Radio Eins): Pressed In A Book (LP - Oh, Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 14 August 2001: Girl Inform Me (LP - Oh, Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 06 September 2001 (Radio Eins): Pressed In A Book (album - Oh, Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 25 December 2001: 'New Slang (CD-Oh, Inverted World)' (Sub Pop) FF #43
- March 2002 (FSK): Know Your Onion! (CD - Oh, Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 04 April 2002 (Radio Mafia): New Slang (CD - Oh, Inverted World) Sub Pop
- 04 December 2003: Kissing The Lipless (LP - Chutes Too Narrow) Sub Pop
- Flake Music
- 17 September 1998: Blast Valve (album - When You Land Here It's Time To Return) Omnibus
- 20 September 1998 (BFBS): 'Blast Valve (LP-When You Land Here, It's Time To Return)' (Omnibus)