It's in this sense that Beam is, above all else, a poet: His tabletops are littered with gritty little snapshots of life well-lived, strewn with tender acoustic strums, pictures of the ocean, shaken maracas, mothers, fathers, arms. It's a beautiful display.
Iron & Wine isn’t an easy place – death and sorrow are never far from the surface – but Beam knows that there’s nothing more healing or more uplifting than giving vent to your dreams and fears and letting them all glide away on a breath of wind. Real or imagined.
"Less is more" is an annoying cliché, but I find myself wishing that Iron and Wine and Brian Deck had put a little more faith in it. ... Beam's distinctive songs are most endearing when their rustic quality is matched by their production.
#46 | / | Pitchfork |