Kiss Each Other Clean

Rolling Stone (p.64) - 3.5 stars out of 5 -- "Beam's lovely voice anchors melodies of crystalline clarity and unshakable catchiness." Spin (p.72) - "KISS EACH OTHER CLEAN explodes his palette even further....The acoustic-rooted tracks are flecked with new hues." Entertainment Weekly (p.71) - "[H]e tries out unexpected effects like whining guitar, mildly skronky horns, burbling electronics, and occasional profanities." Uncut (p.80) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "So, dark and shade, life and death, love and loss, faith and disappointment; war, and the dream of peace. you get all that, and more." Alternative Press (p.87) - 3.5 stars out of 5 -- "[T]he earnest folk singer clears his throat and just belts over production stuffed with thumb piano, screeching horns and toy whistle flourishes....This is Iron & Wine's most resolute statement..." Billboard (p.32) - "The album's seven-and-a-half-minute closer, 'Your FAke Name Is Good Enough for Me,' begins as a modest jazz opus before swelling into a full-on rock cacophony, complete with feedback and Beam's snarling Neil Young-esque guitar chops." Mojo (Publisher) (p.107) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "Beam manages to make it all sound utterly enchanting, gradually adding layers of vocals to create this album's mini-epic touchstone." Record Collector (magazine) (p.90) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "Lilting, cyclical opener 'Walking Far From Home' is a peripatetic journey through the outside world as Beam experiences his won life vicariously through others....An accomplished, ambitious and adventurous record." Clash (Magazine) - "Even with increased early-Seventies polish, a song like 'Godless Brother In Love' serves to demonstrate Beam's majestic knack for melody, his mellifluous vocal left to drift atop twinkling harp and piano."

ゼロ年代以降のUSインディーを代表するシンガー・ソングライター、アイアン＆ワインことサム・ビームが4ADに移籍し、3年ぶりの新作を上梓。これ耳と心に優しいアルバムなのだ。ほっこりとした歌声も、シンプルな美メロも、コーラスの柔らかな重なり合いも、鉄琴やパーカッション、電子ノイズなどを遊び心たっぷりに配した愛らしいバッキングも、すべてが優しさで出来ている。全米2位を獲得済み。
bounce (C)田中幹也