Iron & Wine "Around The Well"
(Sub Pop)

Should compilations be judged by the same criteria as studio albums? Should cohesion be overlooked, reducing the tracks to individual entities rather than contributions to a gestalt? Do good songs justify the disc, or should there be more at stake? Should they even be evaluated at all, given that they appear indiscriminately thrown together, serving as a catchall for a certain period in an artist’s career? Are they nothing more than artistic masturbation, curios for the die-hard fan?

The relevance of these b-side, demo, outtake, rarity, remix, live set, and “Japanese import only” collections can be ceaselessly argued. That the issue remains inconclusive does not stop record labels from releasing them. Let’s consider Around the Well – one such album from Iron & Wine – under this level of scrutiny to see how well it holds up.

The 2-disc anthology has it all: the b-sides, rarities, and previously unreleased tracks collected here will send even the more ardent admirer of Sam Beam’s songbook into a tizzy. One could surmise, even before the cellophane’s been sullied, that the band’s maestro thinks so highly of his work that he assumes there’s a demand for such a massive collection. Only sales numbers can confirm that. Musically, however, the question is whether the listener will be so enamoured by the album’s output as to enjoy it in its entirety or break it down into more easily digestible bite-sized increments. After all, if the album was constructed sporadically, shouldn’t it be digested in kind?

It turns out this question is moot. The first disc features raw recordings, bare songs which were discarded in the build-up to the band’s debut, The Creek Drank The Cradle. The second disc is more polished, being borne of studios and professional engineering, and features sought-after cover versions (The Flaming Lips’ “Waitin’ for a Superman”, New Order’s “Love Vigilantes”) and soundtrack outtakes (“Belated Promise Ring”, “God Made the Automobile”, “Homeward, These Shoes”). This method to the compilation’s madness means its exploration need not be so daunting to the virgin listener. Ultimately, the two halves are a study in contrasting aesthetics, and both succeed on their own merits.

Rest assured, the band’s low-tempo, twang-tinged approach to 21st century folk is ubiquitous, which should please casual fans and completists alike. However, regardless of the intensity of your devotion to the band, both parties are indebted to Sub Pop for issuing this anthology that charts Sam Beam’s maturity as he embraces high-fidelity and the wonders that a soundboard with more than 4 tracks has to offer. If nothing else, the buffet that is Around The Well – with its sprawling and incongruent spread – is a more-than-adequate dining experience before the a la carte meal that will be their new album in 2010. Just be sure to save a bit of room.

—Gavin Crisp