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Samuel Beam, the man behind Iron And Wine, is an old-fashioned acoustic
folksinger, born in South Carolina but based in Miami (Florida).
The home-made folk songs of
The Creek Drank The Cradle (Subpop, 2002)
sound like a tribute to pastoral bards such as
Donovan (Lion's Mane) and John Denver (Faded From The Winter)
and to introspective dreamers like the Everly Brothers
(Bird Stealing Bread) and philosophical realists like the Carter Family
(Southern Anthem), with a touch of blues
(The Rooster Moans, An Angry Blade)
added for good measure.
Upward Over The Mountain may be the most original song here.
Lyrically, Beam's southern vignettes are as unassuming as a piece of antique
furniture.
The EP The Sea And The Rhythm (Sub Pop, 2003) adds five more songs
culled from the same demos (Jesus The Mexican Boy).
Our Endless Numbered Days (Subpop, 2004) is another set of understated
emotions.
On Your Wings is whispered over a rhythmically plucked chord and whining guitar.
Despite its length (close to six minutes),
Cinder and Smoke is equally subdued and simple; and
Radio War is almost a cappella.
Naked As We Came, Each Coming Night,
and Sunset Soon Forgotten hark back to Donovan's tradition of gentle storytelling.
Beam's aesthetic sticks to the principle that less is more.
Stylistic experiments are limited to the spiritual-like syncopated chant of
Teeth In The Grass, the speedy and menacing blues Free Until They Cut Me Down and the slightly more solemn, piano-based Passing Afternoon.
The EP Woman King (Subpop, 2005) capitalizes on the popular success
of the albums. Its new songs are a bit more visceral than usual, a bit less
mellow.
The EP
In The Reins (Overcoat, 2005) was a collaboration with
Calexico on a handful of songs composed by
Iron And Wine.
Sam Beam opted for fuller arrangements on
The Shepherd's Dog (Sub Pop, 2007). Other than the
spartan Resurrection Fern and the waltzing (and moving)
Flightless Bird American Mouth, the new songs verged on the hysterical
compared with the pastoral quiet of the previous albums.
For example, the noir fresco of Pagan Angel and a Borrowed Car
overflew with massive doses of steel guitar and slide guitar (as well as many
other disorienting instruments).
a strategy of rich, thick, colorful tapestry employed also in the fibrillating
shuffle of House by the Sea.
Despite the eccentric detours into
reggae (Wolves, with a surreal dissonant coda),
flamenco (Boy With A Coin),
barrelhouse blues (The Devil Never Sleeps),
swamp blues (Peace Beneath the City, the atmospheric zenith of the album),
and even Native-American tribal music (White Tooth Man),
Beam still kept
his lush new sound well within the atmospheric boundaries of roots-rock.
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(Translation by/ Tradotto da Paolo Latini)
Samuel Beam, l'uomo dietro la sigla Iron And Wine, è
un folk-singer vecchia maniera, nato nel South Carolina ma di stanza a Miami (Florida).
Le canzoni folk casalinghe di The Creek Drank The Cradle (Subpop, 2002)
sembrano tributi a bardi pastorali come Donovan (Lion's Mane) e John
Denver (Faded From The Winter), a sognatori introspettivi come gli Everly
Brothers (Bird Stealing Bread) e a filosofi realisti come Carter Family
(Southern Anthem), con un tocco di blues (The Rooster Moans, An
Angry Blade) aggiunto per gradire. Upward Over The Mountain può
essere la canzone più originale tra quelle del disco. I testi di Beam
dipingono vignette sudiste, tanto modeste come mobilia d'antiquariato.
L'EP The Sea And The Rhythm (Sub Pop, 2003) contiene altre cinque canzoni
tratte dalle stesso demo(Jesus The Mexican Boy).
Our Endless Numbered Days (Subpop, 2004) è un altro insieme
di emozioni sminuite. On Your Wings è sussurrata su un accordo
rimticamente strattonato e su una chitarra lamentosa. A dispetto della sua lunghezza
(vicino ai sei minuti), Cinder and Smoke è equalmente docile e
semplice; e Radio War è quasi a cappella. Naked As We Came,
Each Coming Night, e Sunset Soon Forgotten tornano alla tradizione
di Donovan e dei menestrelli di un tempo. L'estetica di Beam è fedele
al principio secondo cui il meno è più. Esperimenti stilistici
sono limitati al canto sincopato di Teeth In The Grass, il veloce e minacioso
blues Free Until They Cut Me Down e la lievemente più solenne
pianistica Passing Afternoon.
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