It would be nice to think that the Shins just exploded into the indie rock world back in 2001, arriving out of nowhere and inspiring immediate devotion from those who like their pop charged with smarts. Truth is, the roots of the band stretch back nearly five years earlier, when singer/lyricist James Mercer had the band Flake in New Mexico. Flake begat Flake Music. Flake Music did an album, toured and basically embodied the sound of an indie rock band struggling, but to their credit...  [+]