‘Morrow’ not by the Shins of yesterday

When the Shins released “Simple Song,” the second track and lead single off “Port of Morrow,” on Jan. 9, the indie rock universe breathed a sigh of relief that frontman James Mercer had not lost his touch for thoughtful pop bliss in the five years he had taken off from the Shins. Diehard Shins fans became instantly smitten with excitement about the possibility of an album filled with tracks of matching quality.

Those fans might remember feeling that very same excitement in January 2007 when the band released “Phantom Limb,” the lead single from its last album, “Wincing the Night Away.” They might also remember the mild disappointment of discovering that a lead single is the clear peak of its album.

Unrivaled though it may be, “Simple Song” — just as “Phantom” was to “Wincing” — remains an excellent highlight for “Morrow,” an overall gratifying Shins effort that features Mercer at his least confused and most direct ever. (“I call you on the telephone / Won’t you pick up the receiver?” he belts on “It’s Only Life,” nine years removed from “Called to see / If your back was still aligned, and your sheets / Were growing grass.”)

Mercer, having replaced all his bandmates, started a family and launched a successful side project in Broken Bells since “Wincing,” also silences any lingering doubt that he’s moved on for good from his lo-fi origins, eagerly exploring the studio at every turn on “Morrow.”

Unlike with the band’s seminal first two albums, “Oh, Inverted World” and “Chutes Too Narrow,” no one will be able to count the number of instrumental tracks on any given song here (not even happy anomaly “September,” the only one that almost sounds like it would fit on “Chutes,” if not for the tacked-on echo effects and güiro).

If “Morrow” draws any backlash, it will surely be cries of “Overproduction!” from “Chutes” purists, and to be fair, they are occasionally warranted. But as the bursting and forthright love song “Simple Song” assures, Mercer has no interest in letting studio polish replace song ideas — just mature them.

Thankfully, “Morrow” brings plenty of those, too.