Broken Bells
There are straight-forward gems such as “The High Road” and “Trap Doors” as well as atmospheric beauties like the gurgling “Your Head Is On Fire,” the tense and wiry “Citizen,” and the ingeniously constructed “Sailing to Nowhere.” *Broken Bells* is an inspired collaboration that should please fans of the Shins and Danger Mouse alike.
The Shins' James Mercer teams with producer and Gnarls Barkley member Danger Mouse for a melancholy pop record.
The Shins have put out three fantastic albums that combine James Mercer’s jangled songwriting with a chilly psychedelic atmosphere. Brian Burton, a.k.a. Danger Mouse, has put together a string of successful collaborations—most notably as half of Gnarls Barkley—by providing others’ songwriting with suitable…
James Mercer and Danger Mouse (aka Brian Burton) want their project Broken Bells to be seen, and heard, as an honest-to-goodness band, not a side-project dalliance.
Broken Bells boasts some truly marvelous songs, but these peaks are sandwiched between tracks that struggle to exceed colorless tedium.
<p>Danger Mouse and the Shins' frontman stay in their comfirt zones, says <strong>Dave Simpson</strong></p>
Brian Burton and James Mercer lock together to hypnotic effect in Broken Bells. Rating: * * *