James Mercer still sings breezy, melodically engaging melodies over quickly captivating guitars, churning out pop hooks in an impressively abundant manner. “Australia” and “Phantom Limb” will likely go down as classic Shins songs, capitalizing on the form of easy-listening indie-rock that has brought the five-piece so much success. Even the cutesy aroma of the synth-tinged “Red Rabbits” and the lack of initial instrumental involvement in “A Comet Appears” are appealing in their own right. Though it certainly will not “change your life”, Wincing the Night Away is one of The Shins’ finest efforts to date.
The Shins - Australia
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amplifier guitar
guitar washburn
effects guitar
35. M.I.A. - Kala
miaAfter releasing the most talked-about debut of 2005 in Arular, M.I.A. could have easily sunk under the pressure and released a disappointing sophomore follow-up. It is what many other artists do, after all; many find the hype and pressure too much to handle. But coming from the outspoken, intelligent, and confident Maya Arulpragasam, it is not much of a surprise that Kala is of an equal, if not better, nature than her receptive debut. She has lived a life that just begs for a movie, making such music-related pressures seem obsolete in comparison. Kala is a continuation of the stylistic genius displayed on Arular, exchanging instances of hip-hop, world music, electro, ragga, and funk over rapidly paced lyrical deliveries that are often either political orbiguously unidentifiable in nature.