January 31, 2010

Sneak Preview

Print More

Fresh off the reconstruction of The Shins, frontman James Mercer is set to release an album with DJ Danger Mouse (Brian Burton), the patient and mesmerizing producer behind The Grey Album and Gnarls Barkley. Dubbed Broken Bells, the two are set to release a 10-song hip-pop LP that successfully blends Mercer’s balletic songwriting and velvet voice with a DJ’s tempered hip-hop sensibility that keeps the tracks fresh throughout. The two released “The High Road” online last month, a saucy walking anthem that shows some experimentation can still take place in a standard indie rock setting. You can hear who did what on the track, but rather than polarizing the song into two different camps, the different styles mix into something surprisingly delicious. This album is exactly like dipping fries in your Frosty.

Each song has something to offer…the two avoid tedium by sampling, chopping and distorting benchmark progressions into electronic bodies with acoustic skeletons. Check out “Vaporize” and “The Ghost Inside.” Broken Bells drops March 9.

Original Author: Graham Corrigan