Album Review

Iron and Wine – The Shepard’s Dog

• 26th Oct 2007

Three or four listens in and this already sounds like a classic that’s been rudely ignored in your collection for years. One of those records that you put on again after having completely forgotten about and duly realise that it’s terrific and you owe it an apology and a hot beverage.

Openers ‘Pagan Angel and a Borrowed Car’ and ‘White Tooth Man’ are perfect indicators of what’s in store: jaunty yet cynical, catchy yet original, hushed yet sinister.

‘Lovesong of the Buzzard’ is the closest thing on ‘The Shepherd’s Dog’ to the previous album’s ‘Upward Over the Mountain’, a song that makes you realise in a heartbeat that the girl you’re lying next to could well be one that you love. This is gorgeous, gorgeous stuff and Sam Beam is fast becoming one of the most charming and innovative artists in America.

‘Carousel’ belongs in Almost Famous when the bus pulls away from the Golden God party; ‘House by the Sea’ is The Beta Band having some fun and messing around on the World Music Stage; ‘Wolves’ is Damien Rice when he still had some balls and musical identity in his ‘Woman Like A Man’ phase and ‘Boy With a Coin’ is simply brilliant.

It’s hard not to pick out every track as being special, but the truth is none of them stand out, and yet they all do. On an average record almost any of these tracks would be something unique, but with the immaculately high standard of song-craftsmanship on ‘The Shepherd’s Dog’, they simply collaborate to make an enchantingly beautiful album.