An open letter to The Shins

May 20, 2009: one of my best days ever.

Dear The Shins,

I want to thank you for putting on one of the best concerts I've ever attended. You made May 20, 2009 go down in my books as one of my best days I've ever had. You also made a 25-year-old girl cry a few times in sheer joy at how great a concert she was watching. And my fellow concert-goers -- Crystal, Matt, and Dan -- agree with me.

The Orpheum was a great venue for this. Classic architecture with splashes of hipness, and it while they seat a lot of people, there was also a sense of intimacy. My seats were also the best I've had in this venue, since I was in the middle of the middle section. Perfect view to see all your lovely faces and playing.

The set was simple but packed a punch. Strips of backdrop gave a retro feel (very Ed Sullivan, perhaps?) and made interesting stage pictures. The theatre nerd in me was wigging out.

You opened with my #1 Shins song, Australia. What a great way to start the show. Then within the first five or so songs, you also sang Phantom Limb, Red Rabbits, Saint Simon, and Baby Boomerang. THOSE ARE ALL MY TOP SONGS! You could have stopped there, and I would have been happy. I was already welling up with the happy goodtimes I was feeling.

But oh no, you continued.

You also sang other great songs from all your albums, AND you did three amazing covers. The Beach Boys, Neil Young, and THE BETA BAND. THE FREAKING BETA BAND??? That's when I officially lost my shit. As did most of the audience. Because it was FUCKING AMAZING.

You ended the set with Sleeping Lessons, which was beautiful and haunting per usual. Then the audience lost their minds and basically demanded an encore. We were on our feet screaming. Then you came back out and played a few more songs, and ended with New Slang AND having the audience do the "ooos". It was amazing.

Everyone I saw was just glowing and basking in the warmth and joy from that show. It was that great. Also, this was an extremely attractive audience. All the happy little hipsters were insanely attractive, so it was nice eye candy for yours truly. :-)

So in closing, you rock. You really do. Thanks for an amazing concert experience that I will be remembering and loving for years to come. You made my Wednesday night and my May 2009.

Hugs,
Landry


And just for your enjoyment, here's a video I found of that Beta Band cover. Love it as I have. Because it is FREAKING AMAZING: