Rare beauties emerge in Iron & Wine’s
latest release with a two-disc
collection of a rare, never-before-heard
and new-to-print collection of
unyielding goodness. From hidden
treasures of 2002’s The Creek Drank the
Cradle to soundtrack bound leftovers and
side picks from “The Shepherd’s Dog†in
2007, this sampling from the span of
Iron & Wine’s illustrious career is
nothing short of magic, especially for
those rabid fans, or however rabid
folk-fans can get, really.
The first disc is a deliberate, lower
fidelity collection of soulful
selections. The slow scratch and subtle
pop of a needle through a record’s
grooves serve as a signature undertone
throughout. Its raw, basement and
concrete wall acoustics add the perfect
flavor to the perfect set of songs.
This is especially true for a cover of
that gem of a Postal Service single from
2003. If you missed Iron & Wine’s cover
of “Such Great Heights†off the Garden
State soundtrack, it comes in for a nice
closing at the end of the first disc.
Sam Beam’s voice drags to the deepest
depths of his soul and delivers those
Ben Gibbard lyrics in a droning, all
enveloping daze. These lyrics were meant
for a softer take and while the almost
electro-pop original came first, this is
a welcome rendition to a classic.
Nearly every album in Iron & Wine’s
illustrious discography has been an
exploration of Beam’s abilities to weld
musical genres, combine forms of harmony
and instruments so that they emerge in a
new form. The undertones of that
wholesome folk jive remain but in songs
like “Serpent Charmer,†there’s that
undeniable Eastern twang—the spindly
string, the warbling wind and the
mesmerizing drum beat literally pull the
snake out of the basket and the belly
dancer to her feet. Somewhere there’s a
gypsy whose castanets are slapping
together wildly, the beads adorning her
two-piece are flailing uncontrollably
and in the parallel universe of Around
the Well, Sam Beam is performing the
soundtrack to her life. This is easily
one of the best tracks on this compilation.
With a welcome return, “Carried Homeâ€
appears on this compilation as it did on
the “Boy With a Coin†single. The heavy
bass moves the track along and the
poignant lyrics are undeniably
representative of what we might expect
from Iron & Wine. Still, it’s
practically uncharted territory based on
what we’re probably used to. Regardless,
it’s the occupation of musical ground
that makes this track truly special.
The second disc is like the lovechild of
musician friends, upscale recording
equipment and a heightened production
value—an experience of music listen all
on its own. Still, it’s this purposeful
mode of presentation and not a
distinction of production value that
separates it from the first disc.
“Belated Promise Ring†starts off as
maybe the most upbeat,
skip-through-a-dandelion-field set of
bass licks and finger picking in the
discographic history of the band.
However, in true Iron & Wine fashion,
it’s not all pockets full of posies even
while the track evokes images of a
happier and simpler time—thimbles, tree
stumps, imitation pearls and red
balloons along the boardwalk. It’s
packed with forlorn lyrics and
frighteningly delicate nostalgia. It
wouldn’t be Iron & Wine without
something like this, though.
Around the Well credits its namesake to
lyrics from fan-favored track, “The
Trapeze Swinger†and includes some
amazing covers alongside these garage
recordings and unheard soundtrack bites.
We’re graced with a much less synthy but
still poppy cover of New Order’s “Love
Vigilantes†and a way mellow and
thoughtful version of The Flaming Lips’
“Waitin’ for a Superman.â€
It doesn’t stop here and things get even
better than a two-disc compilation of
wonderment. To celebrate the release of
“Around the Well,†Iron & Wine might be
gracing five cities to perform a good
ten shows in rather close quarters. To
up the ante on how awesome this news
already is, each show will be entirely
different from the next since the set
list decision making will be turned over
to those rabid folk fans.
Here’s to more of that sweet and tender
finger picking goodness, soft claps in
the foreground to carrying beats and
those just-like-honey vocals from Sam
Beam in 2010. Iron & Wine have
reportedly started to work on the follow
up to The Shepherd’s Dog and by spring
of next year, we might just have a flood
of new material to get all folksy over.
Until then we have our tasty rarities,
new-spun covers, flipped out b-sides and
some intimate shows to keep us mostly
satiated – for now.
