Basement’s Best: ​“When You Land” a return to the Shins’ roots

Seven years before Natalie Portman averred their life-changing capabilities in the soundtrack-reliant indie sleeper “Garden State,” The Shins were five basement-shaking slackers united under the moniker Flake Music, quietly releasing their one and only record, “When You Land Here, It’s Time to Return.” In the 17 years since, The Shins sharpened their literate jangle to a precise point, James Mercer went space-disco for Broken Bells and, most tellingly, the iPod, that clickwheel soapbar of flash memory, was born, thrived and died in the face of inevitable streaming services. Newly remixed, remastered, reissued and complete with a fresh interpretation of the original album art, “When You Land” is a pleasant, unexpected gift. Though it may not change your life, it’s an artifact to be enjoyed.

To hear the ruffled angst and unadorned eloquence of these five Albuquerque cellar dwellers in comparison to the pinpoint power poppers they became (note the tense; Mercer has been the only original member remaining in The Shins since “Port of Morrow”) makes for exciting listening. Leaning on the lo-fi heroes of their time, Flake Music’s fuzzy roots show, and somewhere between the Pavement and Modest Mouse riffage, Mercer’s unique songwriting can be heard emerging. When not pounding out the power chord choruses that drive the uncannily-titled jam “The Shins,” the band sows the seeds of that sunny jangle which would bring them to the earbuds of a generation.

Their destiny isn’t totally obscured; lead-off track, “Spanway Hits,” is clearly a product of the same spunk that birthed “Oh, Inverted World.” The two-and-four guitar strums, the reaching arpeggiation of Mercer’s sweet voice and the brisk, fidgety pace of it all became hallmarks of the incarnate band’s early repertoire. Clocking in at hardly 30 minutes, “When You Land Here, It’s Time to Return” is as spry a listen as its title suggests, and, thanks to a retroactive familiarity, makes the transition from the last to the first track and through again pretty seamless. While the uniformity of the album from track to track matches that of its antecedents, Flake Music wasn’t all punky pop formula; the jaunty acoustic intermission, “Candy Dish of Diamonds,” at least shows the band’s interest in expanding their sound, if not wholly embracing experimentation.

Considering the cheap beer buzz that birthed the songs in some New Mexican basement almost two decades ago, Flake Music’s “When You Land Here, It’s Time to Return” maintains a scrappy freshness that would only be compounded by the efforts of the soon-to-be Shins.

KNDS Suggests

“Room for Forgiveness”– Hamilton Leithauser
Still riding high from the release of his fine solo debut, “Black Hours,” this summer, the former Walkmen frontman needn’t further remind us of his impressive songwriting chops. Nevertheless, the loping shanty “Room for Forgiveness” reaffirms Leithauser’s prowess.

“Crushed Crushed Velvet” – Bibio
Known best for his atmospheric electro-acoustic pop, the English producer goes full-bore into dance territory. Sounding like a record scratched in just the right spot, the sample-driven beat pounds until blissfully turning itself inside-out.

“For No One” – Houndmouth
Spare and druggedly weary, “For No One” may as well have fallen off of the second side of “Exile on Main St.” Singer/guitarist Matt Myers colors the road song with a storied twang, giving life to the modern degenerates that inhabit it.

“The Love You’re Given” – Jack Garratt
Hauntingly heady, curiously sexy and increasingly dense, “The Love You’re Given” gives Garratt’s neo-R&B contemporaries (Chet Faker, James Blake) a run for their money.

“Nothing Means Nothing” – Michael Rault
Steeped in dusty psychedelia, Rault blends the happy-trails harmony of Dr. Dog, the leisurely vocal delivery of Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, and a fuzzy dual-guitar solo that rightfully puts Foxygen to shame.