Friday, February 18, 2005
Am I Blue?
I guess for the moment I'm back to writing in one color for politics and one for music. This I suppose will be the music color...I feel like the DJ with "radio blinders" on who thinks people want to hear their ramblings instead of music so I guess I should talk about music and not ramble for long. If you ever feel like there isn't any good stuff coming out these days, maybe it's a good time to listen to Iron And Wine's The Creek Drank The Cradle. That's one big picture below...but I think this album is worthy of it. It's a collection of tunes you're surprised haven't been written before (and probably wish you had written yourself as I do). They seem so natural...sounding somehow like Sam Beam discovered them in his dusty old attic in a stack of faded yellow papers. The harmonies are exactly what they should be. The songs are recorded in such a way that they sound inevitable...there was no other way for them to be. This is music for all time. If this music is dated it seems like the date could be anytime in the last 200 years...of course these are ultimately pop songs (meant in the best of ways) but they have a feel that is beyond "classic"...these could be field recordings on a wax cylinder...but I wouldn't want to leave the impression that they're lo-fi...They're just right. The second album Our Endless Numbered Days is recorded quite differently and doesn't have that southern haze but I'd still recommend it. Who knows what wonders of song might still be forthcoming from Sam...Sub Pop really has their ears to the ground...There's also the Shins...more on them later...
