Innocence and Cynicism

The Shins - Wincing the Night Away

Yes, I know this album has been out since 2007, but I just can't stop listening to it right now. For the last few weeks, it's been consistently not skipped on my iPod, which is saying something.

Particularly, A Comet Appears. That song. Wow. That song. Something about it gives me goosebumps. It's ethereal and grounded at the same time. It reminds me of slowly losing innocence and wonder in favour of adulthood and cynicism.

When I picked up Wincing the Night Away at the beginning of the 11th grade (god I feel old saying that), I didn't listen to it for a long, long time. I had, and still have, an odd quirk about me: I love physical CDs. Anything. If I don't know the band, whatever, I'll listen to it eventually, but even if I think it's garbage, I'll keep it forever. I'm glad I do that, now, because though I had no idea who these Shins people were, I picked up that album and I kept it around until I was actually cool enough to listen to it.

Thank god.

If you've picked up this months BeatRoute, check out my interview with OC band Young the Giant. If you haven't picked it up, what the hell is wrong with you? You should probably get on that. The article is on page 15 (not that I notice things like that...) so give it a look!

Also, I'm going to see if I can kidnap my good friends Jesse James and Tammy from Makeshift Innocence to talk about the huge number of tours they're working on, as well as what's next on the menu for the quickly-blooming band.

If you have any requests, I'll see what I can do, just send them in. I have my ways ;)

- Erin