ACOUSTIC POWER: NEW SLANG

The Garden State soundtrack is infamous for it’s whimisical sound, and though almost every song can send you into another world where all the girls have the style and class of Natalie Portman and the perfect moment is just around the corner, “New Slang” by The Shins is the undeniable gem. The movie, written, directed, and starring Zach Braff, as well as Natalie Portman, is a witty and charming ode to the coming of age films of the eighties and nineties, and the soundtrack is blessed with all of the same, almost mystical qualities of the film.

“New Slang” is played in what may be the film’s most memerable moment- the first meeting of Andrew(Braff) and Sam(Portman). It’s one of those simple cinematic scenes that ‘s so well done that it becomes unforgettable, and as Sam says, “You have to listen to this one song. It’ll change your life, I swear.”

The internet has seen many acoustic covers of the song over the years, but this one, released over four years ago is arguably the one to beat. Great vocals and rhythm structure highlight a slightly sped up version of this tear stained classic.

And if you’d ‘a took to me like
A gull takes to the wind.
Well, i’d ‘a jumped from my tree
And i’d a danced like the king of the eyesores
And the rest of our lives would ‘a fared well.