Picture Book & Live Review: The Shins @ Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, October 8th!

Pictures courtesy of Hillery Terenzi, Review by Codi Glancy.

There are concerts that are good, concerts that are great, and concerts that change your outlook towards all other concerts in the best way. The Shins were one of those life changing concerts, at least for me. The Shins are legends in the “indie” music world. My “small town” grade school experience made me one of the few kids in my high school that knew who they were, let alone actually listened to them. I remember walking down the hallways, listening to “Chutes Too Narrow,” wishing I could hang out with Zach Braff and Natalie Portman. While my (kind of lame) teenage dreams never came true, I did get to see the Shins for the first time this past Monday!

The Cobb Energy Center is insanely beautiful. As I walked in, I was instantly in awe with its fantastic architecture, layout and insanely nice staff. The crowded lobby was filled with anxious fans lined up at the merch table and bar before taking their seats. As I sat down Brooklyn based White Rabbits took the stage. I’m not very familiar with their newest work, but I loved their 2009 release “It’s Frightening.” Watching them open was a pleasant surprise as I waited to see one of my favorite bands. White Rabbits had a fun energy and great stage presence as they played thru well known songs like “Heavy Metal” and “Percussion Drum,” as well as other great songs from the rest of their discography.

About 30 minutes later, the Shins took the stage. They went straight into playing and began with an always favorite “Kissing the Lipless.” As lead singer, James Mercer, reached the second verse of the song, the crowd had gone insane. Everyone was instantly out of their seats, screaming along every word. Brief, well-planned instrumentals helped blend songs seamlessly together and the set continued on as they played hits from all four of their albums. The band sounded exactly like the albums, which I didn’t expect because of the recent line up changes. The set seemed insanely short, but by the time that the band played title track “Port of Morrow,” they were already 14 songs in. “New Slang” and “Sleeping Lessons” closed out the main set before the three-song encore. As the band came back onto the stage, they thanked the crowd and then performed a little treat for us all. Mercer greeted the theater one more time and then said that the next song, “No Way Down” was their newest Record Stay Single that will be released the day after Thanksgiving. “September” and “One by One All Day” closed out a beautiful night.

Setlist: