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Iron and Wine   Audio Clip: "Boy With A Coin" Click to play Iron and Wine's first two albums established the group -- which is effectively singer-songwriter Sam Beam and whoever else is in the room when he pushes "record" -- as purveyors of hushed, beguiling indie-folk. The Shepherd's Dog is hardly a renunciation of the earlier material, but it's certainly a purposeful stride past it. With its twinkling pianos and meandering sitar, "Pagan Angel and a Borrowed Car" has the dark, ramshackle groove of Devendra Banhart's freak-folk excursions. Ditto for the bluesy, undulating "White Tooth Man" and druggy, acid-folk shuffle "Peace Beneath the City." Beam runs even further afield on the vaguely funky "Wolves (Song of the Shepherd's Dog)," which mostly sounds like Curtis Mayfield as played by Tim Buckley until it finishes with a weirdly intoxicating dub breakdown. More straightforward fare like "Innocent Bones" and "Resurrection Fern" will satisfy Iron and Wine's base, but it's clear from the stylistic shifts here, Beam isn't too concerned about that. At times, it doesn't feel like he's playing to his strengths, but you can't fault a guy for not wanting to stand still. -- David Peisner |
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