Oh, Inverted World

From the ashes of Flake, then Flake Music, The Shins took shape in 1997 -- same members, different instruments, different approach, culled nearly a decade of playing together. Counterpoint guitars gave way to a single guitar pitted against calculated keyboard passages, swarming indie rock machinations to pop-base melodic endeavors. The resulting sound germinates in a post-punk aesthetic with nods to a traditional pop ethos. There's nothing like it on which to base analysis. Nothing at all. Totally terrific.