Like so many other current Sam Beam admirers, I first discovered Iron & Wine through The Postal Service’s cover of “Such Great Heights.” Now, almost a decade after Beam’s first and only truly solo full-length album, The Creek Drank the Cradle, Iron & Wine has released his fourth record, Kiss Each Other Clean. During the time in between, Beam’s sound has drastically changed. His first record was recorded on a four-track recorder in his kitchen and featured little more than his acoustic guitar and vocal talents. Still, just as his sound has experienced its own evolution, the independent music scene has seemingly changed too. The rise in popularity of folk-infused and -influenced artists certainly is in debt to Iron & Wine, and ÛÒ as if he weren’t already ÛÒ Kiss Each Other Clean should help cement Sam Beam’s place as a staple of modern folk and indie rock.
Kiss Each Other Clean is a very listenable album, building on the mainstream accessibility that Iron & Wine has been afforded by his past two releases. Despite retaining some elitist, indie street cred, it’s an album that your fifty or sixty-something parents can listen to, and they will enjoy it. This may sound lame, but it’s true! If anything, it’s just a testament ÛÒ of course, along with Beam’s beard growing abilities ÛÒ to Iron & Wine’s appeal and expanding popularity.
From the record’s opening, chorus-less “Walking Far From Home,” driven by Beam’s skilled storytelling, to its epic closing, “Your Fake Name is Good Enough For Me,” there really isn’t much filler on this eclectic album. There’s a saxophone-driven number with some pretty funky guitar work (“Big Burned HandÛ) that leads me to think that Beam has been listening to some Springsteen lately. Another one of the record’s stand out tracks, “Monkeys Uptown,” has a dub rhythm, reminiscent of some of the musical styles Beam began exploring and incorporating into Iron & Wine’s ever expanding sound since 2007’s The Shepherd’s Dog.
While a few Iron & Wine folk standards are found scattered throughout the album, there really is no “standard” sound on Kiss Each Other Clean. “Godless Brother In Love” is probably the album’s closest relative to Iron & Wine’s early material. With an arrangement of layered acoustic guitar, piano, and harmonious oohin’ and ahhin’ backing vocals behind Beam’s sweet voice, this track creates the most somber moments on an otherwise upbeat album. One shouldn’t equate this with boring though, as there really aren’t any dull moments to be found on the record. Upon a first listen, you’re always left wondering what to expect with the next track.
All around, it’s a solid four-and-a-half stars out of five. Fans of recent Iron & Wine records should be able to appreciate his ever-changing sound, but lovers of Beam’s early material will certainly enjoy it too. If for some reason the soothing sounds of Iron & Wine aren’t found in your music rotation, it’s a good place to start and work your way back. Ultimately, Kiss Each Other Clean is a mature yet fun record, and, although 2011 is still young, it should surely make many listeners’ top album lists for the year to come.