Couldn’t get Shins Tickets?— You’re not alone. In fact, The Shins‘ choice to play the El Rey had a lot of you folks scratching your heads—the band routinely sells out venues twice the size of the El Rey, which seats somewhere between 700-800 people. How in god’s name were you supposed to get tickets that were effectively sold out before the the show was even advertised? Why not play a bigger venue like the Kiva Auditorium? "We completely understand," so says The Shins on their blog. "[We’re] very aware that lots of you in Albuquerque have been waiting for us to play there for a long time. The thing is—playing the El Rey is a very special thing for us. in the ’90s, both Flake and Scared of Chaka played shows at the Golden West, The Dingo Bar, The Launchpad, and when we were lucky, the El Rey (it was the largest of all of them.) It was a very exciting experience to score a show there, and all our friends would come out and it would be a great, great time. We miss it.”OK, but why not add more dates to the Albuquerque stop?"If we could play more than one night, we would," they say. "Not to get into too many details, but we are red-eying it from Belgium to squeeze this show in before Phoenix. There isn’t even the slightest possibility for a second show. We wish there was."… But, really, the El Rey?"It’s been such a long time since we played a show in our beloved home town that we decided, as a band, that playing the El Rey was the best feel for our return. It’s a very selfish notion, we understand, but playing the El Rey is something that we as a band want to do, as former residents of Albuquerque. It’s a purely sentimental thing that we hope you all understand."Fair enough. But you better come back, misters."We promise to return later this year, and play a regular, normal, big show (or two) somewhere else, that will absolutely get in everyone that wants to come to the show."Oh … well, that’s cool."Thanks for your patience and understanding, Albuquerque."Well, you know … we, uh … we love you.
Are you one of the lucky 700 to get into The Shins show? Tell the world what you thought--post a comment! The rest of us are dying to know how it went.
