Pitchfork Forkcast: New Music: Iron & Wine: "Boy With a Coin (Single Edit)" [Stream]

New Music: Iron & Wine: "Boy With a Coin (Single Edit)" [Stream]

Yeah, but does he still have the beard? The next Iron & Wine single, "Boy With a Coin", continues singer-songwriter Sam Beam's progression from the lo-fi folk of 2002 debut The Creek Drank the Cradle toward full-fledged studio production, picking up from 2004's Our Endless Numbered Days and 2005's Woman King EP. From forthcoming third album The Shepherd's Dog, the new track surrounds layers of Beam's familiar hushed vocals with deft acoustic-guitar playing, hand percussion, and sustained electric-guitar squeals. So, no, Iron & Wine hasn't gone adult-contemporary quite yet. It might be time to retire all those sepia-tone 19th-century metaphors, though. Sub Pop will release "Boy With a Coin" a single July 10, with two other songs, "Carried Home" and "Kingdom of the Animals".