The Shins is an American indie rock band centered around James Mercer.
<… Read Full Bio ↴The Shins is an American indie rock band centered around James Mercer.

The band formed in 1997, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States as a side project of Mercer (previously of Blue Roof Dinner) and drummer Jesse Sandoval, who were both members of Flake Music. The band's original lineup was Mercer (vocals, guitar), Sandoval (drums), Marty Crandall (keyboards) and Dave Hernandez (bass). Neil Langford replaced Hernandez in 1998. Hernandez returned to the band in 2003, as Langford had left the band in 2001. Hernandez remained in the band until 2009. Fruit Bats keyboardist Eric Johnson joined the band in 2006.

Their debut album, Oh, Inverted World was issued in 2001 and contained the singles "New Slang" and "Caring is Creepy", which were both featured in the 2004 film "Garden State". The band's next album, Chutes Too Narrow was released in 2003 and featured the single "So Says I". The band's third album Wincing The Night Away, was released in 2007 and debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200 charts, the highest charting album in Sub Pop history until Arcade Fire's"The Suburbs" debuted at #1. After a short hiatus, Mercer announced in 2009 that the band was to record a new album and that Marty Crandall, and Jesse Sandoval were no longer members of The Shins. The band's new lineup included James Mercer, Eric Johnson, Modest Mouse drummer Joe Plummer and Grand Archives keyboardist Ron Lewis.

Before the release of Port of Morrow, the band lineup changed once more with only Mercer and Plummer remaining from the previously announced lineup. The newly added members were announced as guitarist Jessica Dobson, bassist Yuuki Matthews (formerly of Crystal Skulls) and keyboardist Richard Swift.

The Simple Song Songfacts reports that "Simple Song." was the first single from the Port Of Morrow album, the band's debut release on James Mercer's Aural Apothecary record label. It was also the first offering to be heard from the band following the departure of Jesse Sandoval and Marty Crandall.

The current line-up for the live act is James Mercer (vocals, guitar), Jessica Dobson (guitar), Yuuki Matthews (bass), Richard Swift (keyboards) and Joe Plummer (drums).

2017 - Fifth Album & World Tour
The band released their 5th studio album, "Heartworms" on March 10, 2017 on the Aural Apothecary/Columbia Records, together with a supporting world tour. "Heartworms" features Mercer's most diverse lyrical palette to date: From fictional character sketches ('Fantasy Island', 'Rubber Ballz'), autobiographical accounts ('Mildenhall'), to first single 'Name For You', a resounding call for female empowerment inspired by Mercer’s three daughters.

More information:
*http://www.theshins.com
*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shins

A Call To Apathy
The Shins Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Untie me, I've said no vows
The train is getting way too loud
I gotta leave here my girl
Get on with my lonely life
Just leave the ring on the rail
For the wheels to nullify

Until this turn in my head

I let you stay and you paid no rent
I spent twelve long months on the lam
That's enough sitting on the fence
For the fear of breaking dams

I find a fatal flaw
In the logic of love
And go out of my head
You love a sinking stone
That'll never elope
So get used to the lonesome
Girl, you must atone some
Don't leave me no phone number there

It took me all of the year
To put the poison pill to your ear
But now I stand on honest ground, on honest ground
You want to fight for this love
But honey you cannot wrestle a dove
So baby it's clear

You want to jump and dance
But you sat on your hands
And lost your only chance
Go back to your hometown
Get your feet on the ground
And stop floating around

I find a fatal flaw
In the logic of love
And go out of my head
You love a sinking stone
That'll never elope
So get used to used to the lonesome

Girl, you must atone some
Don't leave me no phone number there

Overall Meaning

In The Shins's song A Call To Apathy, the singer is telling his significant other that he must leave her and move on with his lonely life. He tells her to leave the ring on the rail for the wheels to "nullify," indicating that he wants to put an end to their relationship. He reflects on the past, realizing that his partner never paid rent while he spent a year on the run. He also recognizes his own fear of breaking dams or risking his heart, which is why he's decided to let go of the relationship altogether. Despite his partner's desire to fight for their love, the singer points out that it's impossible to "wrestle a dove" and that she needs to stop floating around and start putting her feet on the ground.

The lyrics hint at a deep sense of disillusionment and disappointment with love. The singer has found a "fatal flaw in the logic of love" and has come to the conclusion that it's better to be alone than to be stuck in a relationship that isn't going anywhere. He refers to his partner as a "sinking stone that'll never elope," implying that she's holding him back from moving forward.

Overall, the song is about letting go of a relationship that's not serving either person and moving on to something new. It's a poignant reminder that sometimes the best thing you can do for yourself and for someone else is to say goodbye.

Line by Line Meaning

Untie me, I've said no vows
Please let me go, I never promised to stay

The train is getting way too loud
I need to leave before things get too chaotic

I gotta leave here my girl
I have to leave you behind

Get on with my lonely life
I need to continue my journey alone

Just leave the ring on the rail
Don't follow me, just let me go

For the wheels to nullify
Let the train take the ring away and let it be forgotten

Until this turn in my head
I had second thoughts about leaving

I let you stay and you paid no rent
I gave you my love and affection, but you never reciprocated

I spent twelve long months on the lam
I've been running from this relationship for too long

That's enough sitting on the fence
I can't be indecisive anymore

For the fear of breaking dams
I've been afraid of hurting you, but I need to move on

I find a fatal flaw
I see a major problem

In the logic of love
In the way we approach relationships

And go out of my head
It's making me crazy

You love a sinking stone
You're holding onto something that will ultimately fail

That'll never elope
It's not meant to be

So get used to the lonesome
It's time to accept being alone

Girl, you must atone some
You have to take responsibility for your actions

Don't leave me no phone number there
Don't try to contact me, it's over

It took me all of the year
It's been a long, difficult process

To put the poison pill to your ear
To tell you the harsh truth

But now I stand on honest ground, on honest ground
Now I'm being truthful with myself and you

You want to fight for this love
You're still holding onto hope for us

But honey you cannot wrestle a dove
You can't force something that's not meant to be

So baby it's clear
It's become obvious

You want to jump and dance
You still want to have fun and be carefree

But you sat on your hands
You didn't take action when you had the chance

And lost your only chance
Now it's too late

Go back to your hometown
Return to a familiar place

Get your feet on the ground
Get back to reality

And stop floating around
Stop being whimsical and indecisive

Contributed by Brayden F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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13y

@Dsenuik for many years, the name of the song was called "a call to apathy" as a tentative title. as kind of like a joke cause they couldnt figure out what to call it.