I'm going tonight, with plans to record.
And of course the standard burning question...what time did the Shins go on?

this was a very boring show. the sound was ok but the band has no stage presence whatsoever. i would have had more fun walking around the city listening to the shins on my ipod. the crowd just stood still staring forward like a bunch of zombies. one of the most boring shows i have ever been to.

^

felt the exact same way bout their performance in february. they have zero stage presence

i saw the shins at the pool last 2 summers ago (?)...probably the worst show ive ever been to

I completely disagree with those of you saying the show was boring.
Last night's show was great - unexpectedly great! Having thought they were HORRIBLE when last I saw them at McCarren Pool last year, I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that they've reworked the songs for the added musician. The encore starting with Pink Floyd's 'Breathe' was awesome. And overall the sound was really good unless you were standing under an overhang at Terminal 5.

a good rockin' show, and i was pleasantly surprised by terminal 5, though occasionally when the shins got loud it sounded like bbbrrraaaaaTREBLE.

What an awful live band. Whatever power or emotion some of their songs may have on record is completely stripped away live.

They were much better than expected, although I wouldn't call it a great show. The Pink Floyd cover was the highlight of the show.

I've never seen the Shins live, so I cannot say with any opinion whether their show sucks or not, BUT...

My question is, why is it that whenever there's a thread about their live show, so many posts start out with "I was expecting them to suck..." or so on...If you think a show is going to suck, why do you go in the first place?

>>>If you think a show is going to suck, why do you go in the first place?

Ah, for the the thrill of assessing the magnitude of the suckitude. Doncha get it?

i was considering going until i saw it was 40$.

Why is Vetiver touring the Shins? Very odd. This is Andy Cabic's Vetiver right? I don't remember any mention of the tour on their site.

Terminal 5 main floor was about 100 degrees last night - really unpleasant. Also thought the sound was kind of crappy from where I was under the overhang. All the songs sounded the same to me last night. Agreed that the place was packed but you could easily spot the only 4 or so people dancing, very tame crowd. Maybe it was the burger I ate right before, but I could have skipped it in favor of that stroll around the city too blunts!

I agree that they don't have much of a 'show' going on (No one moves or communicates with the audience much). But damn that doesn't mean that they 'suck live'. Meh. I'm not here to convert anyone - more breathing room for me if you think they suck.

They were on around 9:15, 9:20. I got there about 8:20 and the main floor was full already, but I got a decent place in the center of the room back by the soundboard without a hassle.

First time at Terminal 5 and I thought it was fine enough. Better than I expected. Love the big stage.

Highlight of the night is when the gaggle of little girls next to me did not know New Slang. "Oh that one was pretty! What was that one?" I thought every young american girl owned the garden state soundtrack.

The stage presence wasn't so bad but the sound was terrible. There was way too much distortion and the vocals were too low. I could go on but it ain't worth it.

The Pink Floyd cover, however, was awesome.

The show last night was a good one despite the fact that their following now seems to be composed of little school girls that don't know their ass from their elbow. The crowd was rather pathetic, and I think that's what contributes to their shows being lackluster at times. Their encore last night though was by far their best one that I have ever seen and their cover of Pink Floyd was fantastic!

Thanks for the info Anon 10:22.

I agree with bobs statement about the emotions stripped away. I saw the Shins in 2003 and it was like seeing a band cover Shins songs.

I saw the Shins down in norfolk va. Definitly one of the worst shows i've ever been to. They have the most unrocking-est drummer ever.

Okay, time for a perspective check here people. If the best thing about a show is the REALLY REALLY CHEESY and LAME Pink Floyd cover, then we have a problem. The Shins have no business playing such an over-played overblown song! This is not your buddy's basement...this is a big show in New York. Play your songs..and if it's gonna be a cover, make it something more interesting the 10 billionth cover of Floyd. Jesus!

The show up to and after that was actually not bad, vocals were too low and they seemed a little flat, but that's kinda their thing. I wouldn't go see 'em again anytime soon, but it wasn't a disaster.

Terminal 5, however, is a disaster. They look like they are a step away from bottle service as a rock show. There are no sightlines in any of the balconies and unless you are right in the center of the floor, the sound is a mess. What a huge mistake that place is. I remember someone commenting that they never thought they would long for Roseland Ballroom, and I am in total agreement!

Was the Pink Floyd cover as good as Qui playing "Echoes"?

I saw the Shins back in 1999/2000 and then again in 2001, and thought they were pretty good.

Mainly interested in reading about Terminal 5.

Mush is exactly right. If you don't get a spot right up on the balcony on either the 2nd or 3rd floor then there's no way of seeing the show. Terminal 5 has as much charm as you'd expect from the shitty name/location. Bowery Presents a bucket of shit.

just think: it's behemoth venues like this that cause the closing of places like tonic and the hook.

Wow, what a positive lot you are !
This was my first time seeing the Shins, I was very excited and thought this concert was a blast. I didn't expect everyone to be jumping around in euphoria because the music is more relaxed than that. Nevertheless, the people in the crowd around me really were getting into it, singing along and dancing. And I think the band had good energy and seemed happy on stage. I admit some of their songs got a bit lost (like Mine's not a high horse) but others were really great.
The venue is interesting, it has its pros and cons like every venue. It seems many venues in New York have sound issues, so I'm getting used to that. I know it is an important part of a concert-going trip to evaluate everything but if you get too caught up in the issues you are having then you just get grumpy and could just as well have stayed home. Lighten up !

YO LA TENGO TIX FOR MAXWELLS ARE ON SALE IF ANYBODY CARES.

the teeny bopper above needs to get a clue...

don't you know we are living in the AGE OF INSOLENCE

where's last night's set list? how long did the Shins play for? Is there an opening act? Any reason to get there at 7 when doors open?

hey guys, i wanted to make a joke about daft punk and what time they would be playing, but im too lazy to read through all the comments to see if someone already did. so can someone let me know if the joke has been made here or not, cause if not i can just skip right ahead to the post on the national.

I saw the Shins back in, oh, February of 2004, on Valentine's Day, actually, and I remember Marty being really funny and engaging with the crowd. At one point he started playing some Native American-y wind flute tones on his keyboard and said, in that stereotypical "Big Chief" voice, "Let me tell you the story of Valentine's Day." That cracked me up.

Cam Diaz.

I heard for tonight's show, the Shins will be dressed in animal costumes, stagediving and crowdsurfing their way through the crowd (making sure to "high-five" each person in the audience). They are also going to invite everyone on stage for the encore to dance (since no one else does that). Hopefully you bitter, pathetic whiners will enjoy!

We'll settle for not sucking.

"hey guys, i wanted to make a joke about daft punk and what time they would be playing, but im too lazy to read through all the comments to see if someone already did. so can someone let me know if the joke has been made here or not, cause if not i can just skip right ahead to the post on the national."

i typically use ctrl+a, ctrl+f to locate daft punk jokes; i suggest you do this going forward.

http://www.ocregister.com/entertainment/band-mercer-shins-1882884-song-behind

a good article that sums up their lameness as a live act

i liked the show, but it didn't hols a candle to this summers daft punk show!

Haha.. I am as much a fan of insolence as the next guy. I guess it got lost in the shuffle somewhere, with the excitement, beer, happy crowd neighbors etc. with the frightening result that I enjoyed myself and thought the Shins were quite good ! I will take better care next time and put my sinister face on properly.
This comment board is highly entertaining btw. I should join more often, it has a wonderfully morbid blend of seriousness and sarcasm. Keep up the good work.

worst. show. ever.

Terminal 5's bathrooms on the third floor were flooded on Monday at the Justice show and it came down along the entire front of the 2nd and first floor bar. It was like watching a concert through one of those waterfall walls at expensive bars in Vegas. Only it was coming from a toilet.

dammit, how was vetiver?

almost went to see this show just for them, but then wasn't excited to see the shins and plus it's such a huge place! the last time i saw vetiver it was a super laid back show for a crowd of maybe forty, and i was sitting pretty much underneath andy's monitor.

Went to the show tonight (Oct. 24) and I have to say I really enjoyed it! It was a really fun concert ( dare I say more fun than M.I.A.?) and even though Mercer doesn't really engage the crowd that much, his shyness/awkwardness is in my opinion part of the band's charm. One thing that has been pissing me off recently are the crowds in these shows! Case in point: The Shins opened with Sleeping Lessons and followed that with Australia and the crowd barely moved! C'mon people those are two brilliant songs that just make you want to get up off your ass and dance like no ones looking! Seriously are you people stoned/shitfaced/any other lame excuse as to not dance to such songs?! If the band doesn't engage the crowd by their own make them by dancing and jumping like crazy or at least bob your heads and move!

Oh yeah and Vetiver was pretty damn good too!

Last night was the 4th shins show I've been to--I've had so much fun at every show. I saw a show in Lawrence, KS in May 2004 (I think). The crowd was 10x more enthusiastic than the crowd here the past two nights.

At that show in Lawrence, Marty was so enthusiastic, as was the rest of the band...just particularly Marty. I remember they even had a 'dance contest' with the crowd to see who could dance the craziest.

So I was really surprised and really disappointed last night when the crowd just STOOD there. Everyone stared at me the whole time because I was basically one of about 5 people in the crowd dancing.

If I was singing to a crowd who was just standing there and not looking excited...well then I probably wouldn't be that excited either.

Terminal 5 was too big though...

Shins were amazing last night. I thought Terminal 5 was great for a larger venue. It was big, but still has sort of an intimate feel.

It was an awesome show, you people are freakin' crazy. No one danced because they are scared to be the first ones. there should be dance pits for those of us who like to dance around. start a pit big circle next show guys. What was the setlist last night?

I saw them at First Avenue in MPLS a while ago on a previous tour and it was pretty boring. I like their music, but there is nothing special about their live shows at all. Also their keyboard player annoyed me.

...now I'm realizing why I took so many damn pictures, I think mainly because I was a bit bored...even though I made it to the front :(

Saw the Wednesday 24th show. The show was really enjoyable and the Shins pulled of several songs exeptionally--So Says I, Sea Legs, Kissing the Lipless and Caring is Creepy to name a few. There were also some not so on songs like (as usual) New Slang (they can never get this right in NY for some reason).

The sound was far from great--the main problems being an over prominant base drum and distortion on Mercer's mic--not sure if this was intentional but it was not a good choice. If the Shins are bringing a sound team around with them--they need to upgrade. Even an average professional on the board could have improved the sound mix.

The venue was not very comfortable and the exit was particularly terrible. There are like 200 doors to let people out of yet they funnelled everyone through the front 2 doors--very stupid and uncomfortable.