When it comes to do-it-yourselfers, Sam Beam proved with his first album that he didn’t need anyone to create good music. In fact, he’d already been doin’ it for seven years before anything happened. If his demo didn’t land in the hands of someone who recognized it, Sam may still be creating his beautiful melodies in obscurity. Something about the idea of one man making beautiful music without anyone else’s involvement that seems so pure. So when Iron & Wine released the shocking stylistic shift of Shepherd’s Dog, I thought that the simple beautify of Beam’s early demos would be inevitably buried in sonic experimentation.
Then I heard the unreleased collection Around the Well, and my faith was renewed. Not so much that Beam will all of a sudden revert to the primitive 4-track closet, but that Beam presumably has a backlog of demos. Unspoiled, unfettered that both hold Beam’s gentle vocals and beautiful melodies. Although many of the tracks had been relased or played live before, many have fresh demo-like treatments. Most of the tracks on the first disc fall into this category. “Peng! 33” and “Loud as Hope” sound great as remastered demos. The immediate standout of disc one is “Morning” which seems like a the best of the demo-like bunch that hasn’t been officially relased. Each has a gentle sound.
Though initially somewhat disappointing, the progressively more produced sound of the second disc certainly grows with each spin. “Homeward these Shoes” sounds like an outtake from Our Endless Numbered Days. It’s poignant lyrics paint a beautiful picture of a prodigal son. ” Homeward these shoes worn to paper / Thin as the reason I left here so young / Homeward and what if I see her / There in the doorway I walked away from.” If that’s not poetry, I don’t know what is. “Love Vigilantes” has a strummed guitar sound accentuating Beam’s beautiful melody. He certainly knows the power of repetition.
From there, the chronological sequence hits what sounds like the more experimental phase. “Serpent Charmer” and “Carried Home” have both very different percussion backgrounds and much different instrumental sounds. I could do without them. But before the end, Beam shows he’s got some promise in the more heavily produced with “Kingdom of the Animals.” The tracked vocals show Beam’s range and beauty as a harmonizer. The piano with its rhythmic flare makes the song have a honky-tonk feel. It’s a track that hard to put your finger on because it morphs between so many things (heavy harmony, honky piano, accordion?).
Iron & Wine throws the old purists a bone and connects the old with the new. The tape is great for both those discovering Beam for the first time and those who are already in his camp. Certainly not just for completists, this as essential as Iron & Wine albums.
About the author: Jeff is a teacher in the Boston area. When not buried correcting papers, Jeff can be found plucking various stringed instruments and listening to all types of americana music.