Customer Reviews

Broken Bells [+Video]

5 star:		(77)
4 star:		(26)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When James Mercer, singer/guitarist for the Shins, and producer Brian Burton (Danger Mouse) announced in the fall of 2009 that they would be releasing an album together as Broken Bells, it instantly became one of the most anticipated alternative albums of 2010. Instead of becoming just another Danger Mouse collaboration saturated with samples, every instrument was played and recorded in the studio.

Mercer went through some evolution for this record as well. Although his work on the Shins' records often required high register vocals, his voice breaks into the falsetto range on Broken Bells as well as dropping into the lower depths of his capability.

Where many collaboration albums often fall into a competition for influence, Mercer and Burton embrace each other's strengths which results in an extremely well balanced blend of the two artists' styles. The first track, "The High Road," opens sounding very much like another Gorillaz track. This should come as no surprise since Danger Mouse produced their second record, but after twenty five seconds of waiting for Damon Albarn's trademark vocals, the music transitions into a track much more comparable to the Shins' previous releases.

On the following track, "Vaporize," Mercer is given the introduction before Burton's influence fades into the mix.

Easily the catchiest song on the album, "The Ghost Inside" is Danger Mouse's only true feature song. With a beat resembling that of "Kids With Guns" on the Gorillaz album Demon Days, and falsetto vocals reminiscent of Burton's other major project, Gnarls Barkley, "The Ghost Inside" is as close as Broken Bells gets to a club worthy hit. Even though Mercer's vocals are not as distinctive on this track as they are on the rest of the album, his presence is still felt and the final verse loses the falsetto, giving Mercer's voice a chance to shine.

Time will tell if Mercer and Burton join forces for a follow up to this incredible debut, but their chemistry is undeniable. Broken Bells is a short record, ringing in at less than forty minutes, but there isn't a single track that hasn't been carefully crafted by the two artists. Mercer's distinct voice over a live Danger Mouse instrumentation is enough to engage anyone who has enjoyed past work by either artist and if it does turn out to be the duo's only release, it will not be forgotten.

Similar Artists: The Shins, Gorillaz, Beck

Track Suggestion: The Ghost Inside

Danger Mouse is on a roll and this collaboration with James Mercer of The Shins is beautifully unexpected. I was expecting something similar to his work on Beck's Modern Guilt, Gnarl Barkley, Gorillaz, or Damon Albarn's Good, Bad & the Queen.

Danger Mouse (aka Brian Burton) plays his own instruments rather than sampling while bringing the same melodic intensity. Mercer brings his signature vocals. Together, the result is immediate and exactly what 2009 was lacking IMO.

Worth the price at any price.

Broken Bells is producer du jour Dangermouse's latest musical venture comprising himself and vocalist James Mercer from Indie band The Shins. The pair say songwriting was shared 50/50 and the result is an album comprising 10 tracks, which are experimental and melodic, with sonic variety.

Everything stands out really, from opening "The high road" with guitars and soothing harmonies, the acoustic Beatles-meets-U2 "Vaporize", to the groovy falsetto-sung "The ghost inside" (which wouldn't sound out of place on Gorillaz new CD).

The psychedelic "Sailing to nowhere" is delicate with ghostly harmonies, "October" has a lovely piano refrain, while "The mall & misery" has a Middle Eastern feel.

My favourite track is "Mongrel heart" with a wavy groovy baseline, cascading harmonies, and a string/mariachi horn break, simply stupendous! Hopefully, we'll be hearing more from the pair.

Probably the album of the year so far. Not one bad song on it. The beats are musically interesting and I really like Mercers vocals in the Shins and they are just as good here. Good lyrics too. Definitely buy this one if you want some great music.

I don't own anything by James Mercer (The Shins) or Brian Burton (Danger Mouse), and hadn't heard any of the hype surrounding this release. I was pretty lucky to hear "The High Road" a week or so ago and became intrigued, which led me to NPR's free preview of the album, which in turn led me to purchase the album when it was released yesterday. I must say that I'm blown away. Mercer and Burton have written some incredible sounding music for this album. Mercer plays guitar, bass, and provides the vocals, while Burton plays drums, organ, piano, bass, and synthesizers and he produced the record. The album also incorporates strings and horns in some of the songs. Mercer's voice is well suited for the material, ranging from tenor to falsetto. This is pop music at its finest, with some beautifully layered instrumentation.

Highlights for me were: "The High Road", "October", "The Ghost Inside", "Citizen", and "The Mall and Misery", but all the songs were great. Broken Bells have crafted a perfect pop listening experience with this release.

I was not familiar with this band until recently. Some concert tickets landed in my lap, so my wife and I went to the show - boy can they play! It seemed that every member of the team played a wide variety of instruments and roles. The music was fun and the concert setting was a fun way to experience their synergy.

The LP pressing is excellent, and those with good equipment will not be disappointed.

Listening in the living room was, of course, different from a concert setting. You hear many subtleties and harmonies that may be drowned out in the live event. In this setting it took me a couple of listens to get used to the music. Then it started to resonate with me in a new way. There is a lot built into these songs. It is now among my favorite albums and it continues to grow on me.

Sure am glad I got to see these guys and hear their unique voice. Thanks, Broken Bells, for expanding my musical world!

Broken Bells is an interesting mix: the Shins' lead James Mercer, beat master Danger Mouse (who produced Gorillaz' amazing album "Demon Days") and both of them aiming squarely at a pop-music style. The end result works well, and it is not only a testament to the dual talents, you'd swear that an experienced hit-maker must be ghost-writing some of this stuff behind the scenes. Mercer's voice runs rampant along the stylistic ladder, at times singing like The Killers, at other times sounding like Moby, or even pulling off a Damon Albarn (Blur, Gorillaz) wail, as on "The Ghost Inside". Meanwhile, Danger Mouse swaps roles deftly, ramping up a back beat ("The High Road") or switching to a soaring Beatles-esque string arrangement ("Sailing to Nowhere"), and all of it catchy.

Unfortunately, the effort never really rises above "good" to "great": catchy hooks never really get stuck in your head, and a lot of the spacy atmospheric tones ("Your Head is on Fire") didn't leave me rushing for the replay button so much as deciding this is "have to be in the mood for it" music. I've given it plenty of chances to "grow on me", and it hasn't. Broken Bells makes for a pleasant diversion but probably won't be in heavy rotation in your player unless you're already a James Mercer/Danger Mouse fan.

This is a great album. James Mercer can do no wrong- amazing melody, lyrics and vocals. (Repeat- melody- remember what that is?) While I was listening I thought of Pet Sounds, The White Album and Ray Davies. Yes, it's on that level. But, it is very distinct and unmistakably James Mercer (with Danger Mouse thrown in). It takes a few listenings, but when you get there-WOW!

The primary vibe I hear and enjoy in this music is something that reminds me of a certain type of band from the 1980s -- in Broken Bells, I hear echoes of The Church and Flock of Seagulls and Psychedelic Furs and Naked Eyes and the Cars and the Thompson Twins and Level 42.

But those echoes I hear are more about melodic melancholy than anything having to do with the Reagan era or new wave, because the album sounds too timeless to spring from one particular decade. The instruments, particularly the keyboards, are many and varied, and the style of a song often shifts several times during the course of these suite-like tracks.

It's a really adhesive record -- My first reaction was, "This is OK." Then "This is better than I thought." Then I realized it was most of what I was listening to. And, like most great albums, it has songs that tend to grow on you just as you were beginning to get a little tired of the ones that had grown on you before.

I'd like to talk about the production (which is quite similar to Danger Mouse's work with Damon Albairn on the second Gorillaz), about James Mercer's vocals and his extremely unusual lyrics. But I think I would start on that task and write one of those 10-page long, slightly crazed reviews that few people ever read.

So I'll just say this: "Broken Bells" is down-tempo, groove-filled and great. I started out buying just a track here and a track there and, before I knew it, had the whole damn thing.

A bit early to be saying album of 2010 when I'm reviewing in July of that year. I hope I'm wrong, because that would mean there is another album out there EVEN BETTER than this one. Great! But, in lieu of this phantom album landing in my lap before 31 December, here are reasons to buy this album right now -

in fact, stop reading my review and go buy it, why are you still reading? -

OK - if you insist - four reasons only:-

1. Awesome voice. Rendered more awesome than when James Mercer plays in his band, the Shins - more raw, more on edge, more emotional, more in your heart.
2. Wonderful songwriting. Powerful. Resonant. Built around one man and his guitar. Rock and roll, nothing more complicated than that.
3. Amazing production. So the songs work, and I'm sure they sound good acoustic. But this is album of the year we're talking about. The moment the first song "The High Road" kicks off with its weird synthesiser spiral, you know you're on a journey, it's going to go far, you're going to have pay attention - and you'll want to.
4. Smart as a Masters degree, but not an ounce of pretentiousness. These are two of the smarter people on the scene writing and performing music. Everything feels that little bit more thought through and composed (in both senses). Yet you can just kick back and call this a summer album and never recall a single lyric.

Reasons up. Go listen!