Iron and Wine becomes, with this EP, a euphoric drug for me. If there’s anything negative about this record, it’s that it is not quite enough of a fix. I’m interested by the first track, falling in love by the second, and begging for more after the fifth. That’s quite an effect for an EP that spans only 21 minutes and 19 seconds in all.
Musically, it is very similar to Creek Drank the Cradle, Iron and Wine’s 2002 release. Don’t forget, though, how damn good it was. Sam Beam, Iron and Wine’s one member, has little to hide behind””guitar and Simon and Garfunkel-like harmonies are the premise, and strong, touching lyrics abound unfailingly. Beam is hardly less talented than William Faulkner at displaying an undying southern legacy, although it does not come through on The Sea & the Rhythm quite as strongly as on Creek Drank the Cradle.
"Jesus the Mexican Boy" is a narrative about, you guessed it, an updated, suggestively secular Jesus character that "never wanted nothing" and travels to forgive his betraying friend: "Naked the Judas in me/ Fell by the tracks but he lifted me high/Kissing my head like a brother and never/Asking why." With a soft, sweeping guitar accompaniment, "Jesus" is an instant favorite.
The title track, "The Sea and the Rhythm", is a song for a lover with lyrics that are definitely.... different: "Tonight, we’re the sea and the salty breeze/The milk from your breast is on my lips/And lovelier words from your mouth to me/When salty my sweat and fingertips." Despite the weirdness of that mother/lover line (possibly a bit of an Oedipal complex?), the song is a terrifically romantic piece with a gentle, memorable melody.
Hopefully, Beam will soon be agreeable to retiring from his day job of teaching cinematography at the Miami International University of Art and Design to put out more music. God knows he’s already a classic in the making. Iron and Wine becomes, with this EP, a euphoric drug for me. If there's anything negative about this record, it's that it is not quite enough of a fix. I'm interested by the first track, falling in love by the second, and begging for more after the fifth. That's quite an effect for an EP that spans only 21 minutes and 19 seconds in all.
Musically, it is very similar to Creek Drank the Cradle, Iron and Wine's 2002 release. Don't forget, though, how damn good it was. Sam Beam, Iron and Wine's one member, has little to hide behind--guitar and Simon and Garfunkel-like harmonies are the premise, and strong, touching lyrics abound unfailingly. Beam is hardly less talented than William Faulkner at displaying an undying southern legacy, although it does not come through on The Sea & the Rhythm quite as strongly as on Creek Drank the Cradle.
"Jesus the Mexican Boy" is a narrative about, you guessed it, an updated, suggestively secular Jesus character that "never wanted nothing" and travels to forgive his betraying friend: "Naked the Judas in me/ Fell by the tracks but he lifted me high/Kissing my head like a brother and never/Asking why." With a soft, sweeping guitar accompaniment, "Jesus" is an instant favorite.
The title track, "The Sea and the Rhythm", is a song for a lover with lyrics that are definitely.... different: "Tonight, we're the sea and the salty breeze/The milk from your breast is on my lips/And lovelier words from your mouth to me/When salty my sweat and fingertips." Despite the weirdness of that mother/lover line (possibly a bit of an Oedipal complex?), the song is a terrifically romantic piece with a gentle, memorable melody.
Hopefully, Beam will soon be agreeable to retiring from his day job of teaching cinematography at the Miami International University of Art and Design to put out more music. God knows he's already a classic in the making.
1. Beneath the Balcony
2. The Sea and the Rhythm
3. The Night Descending
4. Jesus the Mexican Boy
5. Someday the Waves