Article and Photos by: Charles Yamabe

Chicago, IL — With a brief “Thank You” and few laughs, 43-year-old Sam Beam took the stage. Beam, better known as Iron & Wine, is currently on tour promoting his sixth album, titled Beast Epic. Iron & Wine brings silver-tongued, relaxing, acoustic vibes that are like a gentle rain on a warm summer day. His voice is so soothing that even if the world was ending and he told you it was going to be all right, you would believe him. On this particular night, Iron & Wine played to a sold out Thalia Hall. Thalia Hall is a concert hall modeled after the Prague opera house and built in 1892. The setting couldn’t have been more appropriate. The subtle romantic tones of Iron & Wine mixed with the sweeping architecture of the theater lit with ambient lighting and large fluffy clouds created an atmosphere out of a dream.

The crowd remained in complete silence as the singer crooned through his library of songs. Iron & Wine played a mix of new and old all the while keeping attention to the adoring crowd. This was the tour that early fans had been waiting for as it was a return to Iron & Wine’s early roots. The show embodied everything fans had grown to love about Sam Beam. It entailed laughter, sorrow, as well as an array of emotions as experienced by the crowd and Sam together as he poured his heart out through his work. The new album is based on his original idea of “recording everything live and doing minimal overdubbing.” This completely showed in the simplistic yet deep nature of the music as well the subtle splashes of pastel hues.