The Post-Rockist

Iron and Wine-Carousel
(from The Shepherd’s Dog)

In the first ten seconds of the first track from The Shepherd’s Dog, you hear an up-tempo, far-off guitar and I can’t help but think of lyrics from my favorite Joni Mitchell song “All I want.” She sings, “Alive, alive, I wanna get up and jive. I wanna wreak my stockings in some juke box dive.” By the time the drums come in, I’ve already transported myself into mismatched stockings that are racing down my calves, kicking up sawdust in some bohemian hideout in Laurel Canyon with my skirt pulled up to my knees. This type of musical quantum leap is not uncommon for me, or for anyone else I’m sure, but it rarely feels biographical. Usually, I let my music of the week lay out the characters and the scenes in front of me. But with The Shepherd’s Dog it’s different. It’s eerily familiar. I’m the character in these songs and I know where things are going. There are layers of instruments, vocals, and at times haunting drones that include everything from psychedelic guitar to saloon-style piano that for me feel…nostalgic. They create an atmosphere perfect for reminiscing. When listening, I’m allowed access into personal landscapes I can’t relive without the songs’ help. It’s gripping; it’s art. And that’s just the music. The lyrics give me plenty to work with, plenty to interpret how I will. For instance, my favorite song on the album currently is “Carousel.” From the first notes, I can feel how the music sounds. Then come the words: “Almost home…” God. Coming home. I’ve been coming and going a lot lately. I know how many ways that can feel. Coming home to family or the one you love, or to an empty apartment. And I feel it. The voices continue, “…and the perfect girls, by the pool…” and I’m off again, but now into a grainy old home video where I’m shielding my eyes from the sun and turn from my spot by the water to wave at the camera. I can’t say why these different sounds and textures feel so tailored to me, but I can say that I’m up to the challenge of discovering more about myself through this album. It’s like all music that is close to your heart: it feels intimate.

–Posted by Alisha