Iron and Wine - Ghost on Ghost (2013)

Sam Beam continues to branch further away from his folk roots and really shows how versatile a songwriter he is on this album. The influences here range from jazz to pop to funk to soul, but somehow it all blends to make a coherent and beautiful collection of songs. In fact, that's one of the things I really admire about him. He's not afraid to experiment with new styles and move out of his comfort zone even if this is a process that takes several albums to fully achieve. While this is definitely not my favorite of his, "Ghost on Ghost" does contain some potentially classic Iron and Wine songs such as "Caught in the Briars," "Low Light Buddy of Mine," and "Baby Center Stage." In all, this is another high quality release from a very high quality artist and will hopefully pull in even more fans who will appreciate Mr. Beam's eclectic musical stylings.
9/10