Autumn Mixtape

Whenever the air gets a little crisper and the leaves begin their change, I always find myself in the mood for music that is introspective and beautiful, sometimes folk in nature, but always atmospheric. Here is a mix that I made for my good friend Devin a few weeks ago that I have been listening to myself ever since. Do enjoy this, it is perfect for driving or sitting alone or whatever situation you may find yourself in.

Tracklisting:
1. Roscoe (Acoustic) - Midlake [from the album "Oak & Julian"]
2. Carry Me Ohio - Sun Kil Moon [from the album "Ghosts Of The Great Highway"]
3. Size Too Small - Sufjan Stevens [from the album "Seven Swans"]
4. Landslide - Fleetwood Mac [from the album "Fleetwood Mac"]
5. Jezebel - Iron & Wine [from the album "Woman King"]
6. I Was Young When I Left Home - Antony Hagerty & Bryce Dessener [from the album "Dark Was The Night Compilation", originally by Bob Dylan]
7. Ohio - Damien Jurado [from the album "Rehearsals For Departure"]
8. Left & Leaving - The Weakerthans [from the album "Left & Leaving"]
9. Majesty Snowbird - Sufjan Stevens [unreleased live track]
10. Tripped - Neva Dinova/Bright Eyes [from the album "One Jug Of Wine, Two Vessels"]
11. Steel On Steel - J. Tillman [from the album "Vacilando Territory Blues"]
12. Don't Be Shy - Cat Stevens [from the album "Harold and Maude OST"]
13. To Be Alone WIth You - Sufjan Stevens [from the album "Seven Swans"]
14. The Great Invitation - The Apprentice [from the album "An American Portrait"]

Iron & Wine - Around The Well

Admittedly, I am an avid Iron & Wine fan, so Sam Beam and Co. could release an album full of him reading War & Peace and I'd still on some level love it. Fortunately, however, Around The Well is nothing like that. It is a double disc album full of rare and unreleased songs. Disc 1 is a collection of home recordings and demos; Disc 2, a compilation of B-side tracks that were recorded in studio, but that never made the final album cuts. Around The Well is career-spanning, including outtakes from The Creek Drank The Cradle through The Shepherd's Dog. It is honestly beyond me how some of these tracks have taken so long to be released; they are brilliant.

Tracklisting:
Disc 1:
1. Dearest Forsaken
2. Morning
3. Loud As Hope
4. Peng! 33
5. Sacred Vision
6. Friends They Are Jewels
7. Hickory
8. Waitin' For A Superman
9. Swans and The Swimming
10. Call Your Boys
11. Such Great Heights

Disc 2:
1. Communion Cups and Someone's Coat
2. Belated Promise Ring
3. God Made The Automobile
4. Homeward These Shoes
5. Love Vigilantes
6. Sinning Hands
7. No Moon
8. Serpent Charmer
9. Carried Home
10. Kingdom Of The Animals
11. Arms Of A Thief
12. The Trapeze Swinger

Iron & Wine - The Shepherd's Dog

Iron & Wine's Sam Beam is one of those songwriters. The kind that can release album after album after album, and somehow each one gets better and better. You'd think that at some point, they would release an album that is mediocre or alright at best. If anything, "The Shepherd's Dog" is a testament to one fact: if he hasn't already, Sam Beam has most certainly hit his stride.

Up until the split with Calexico released in 2005, Iron & Wine's music was, more or less, predictable. That's not to say that it was bad, it was just similar to most of his other songs. Simple and quiet folk songs were Beam's forte. Then, in 2005, Beam released "In The Reins", a split with Arizona natives Calexico. "In The Reins" was a blending of Beam's uncanny ability to craft beautiful songs, with the full band [and sometimes upbeat] feel of Calexico. The result was staggering. "The Shepherd's Dog" brilliantly keeps with that new tradition. The songs are upbeat, but not poppy, showcasing a full band and an experimentation unseen on previous works. "The Shepherd's Dog" is by far Beam's most accomplished work to date, though not necessarily my favorite. I still have a soft spot for "Our Endless Numbered Days" which is the soundtrack to many of my memories.

All in all, "The Shepherd's Dog" gets a 5 out of 5 from me.

Tracklisting:
1. Pagan Angel and a Borrowed Car
2. White Tooth Man
3. Lovesong of the Buzzard
4. Carousel
5. House by the Sea
6. Innocent Bones
7. Wolves (Song of the Shepherd's Dog)
8. Resurrection Fern
9. Boy With a Coin
10. The Devil Never Sleeps
11. Peace Beneath The City
12. Flightless Bird, American Mouth

Highlight Tracks: "House By The Sea", "Boy With a Coin", "Flightless Bird, American Mouth"