The sauntering "The Rifle's Spiral," which the band performed in Oakland this week, is the second track we've heard from the newly configured Shins, and I really can't understand what necessitated a lineup change. "The Rifle's Spiral" would have fit well on Chutes Too Narrow, and it isn't the rhythmic and percussive vibe that James Mercer said was coming from the band. But then again, maybe he's cooking up some huge drum circle epics he isn't ready to unveil yet. Out of the two new tracks The Shins have been hauling out on tour, I've got to give the edge to "Double Bubble."

A new Shins album is due out in 2010 via Mercer's Aural Apothecary. [Stereogum]