SnowGhost Music

I know I spent a healthy portion of the last blog bashing the Miami music scene and its accompanying lack of quality shows. I still firmly believe these things and I would vehemently defend them against anyone smaller than me, but there are of course exceptions to every rule, and now is a good time to bring one up. Nestled rather scuzzily in the heart of Little Haiti just north of Downtown Miami is a very old English Pub, known equally for its commitment to broadcasting any and every important soccer event, especially those involving United Kingdom anything, and also for supporting and presenting local music. Occasionally they even bring in a fairly well-known indie act, brave enough to put several hundred extra miles on their van odometer for the opportunity to play a dive bar in front of all 58 Miami indie-rock fans. One such rare gem of a time involved former Miami resident Sam Beam playing a solo show many years ago. I remember telling him after the show that there was this great new studio I’d sort of been helping put together out in Montana. He was very polite, and I’d remember more of what I’d said if I wasn’t so impressed with his perfectly dynamic set or distressed that my ride might have taken off without me.

The reason I bring up this little golden nugget of a night is because this was the only time I’d ever seen Iron and Wine. Things have certainly changed since then. For starters, Sam and I have both left Miami, and Iron and Wine is probably a lot more well-known at this point. So when I found out he’d be playing at Lupo’s in Providence, I bought reserved-seating tickets in advance. Said venue is the very place where last year’s Bright Eyes show moved me to whine about poor sound quality at shows. This year, I left Ted behind, but I was still a bit unsure of what to expect. Was it going to be a solo show? Would it sound like ass if there were a band? Would the show be on a tight schedule so that the club kids could take over after hours?

My sound worries were put to sleep upon arrival. I bumped into a group of friends and we purchased beers just as Blitzen Trapper began opening up. I’d heard of them, mostly good things, but I’d never heard them. They were good, and so was the sound, but it wasn’t loud enough to compete with the scintillating conversation going on around us. Also, the singer was very short so that I kept wondering who was singing and then focusing what little attention I was capable of producing on other things. Like the venue itself. It’s huge, and we had reserved seats that were upstairs, so we toured the place in anticipation for the main show, which judging by the set-up was going to include lots of musicians.

We found our seats and got our drinks just as Sam Beam took the stage with his sister. The sound and the songs they played were spectacular. He’s obviously come a long way from Churchill’s Pub in Miami, and his voice has too. Beam’s voice has never really been the focal point of my adoration, but on this night, especially at the beginning of the show, I was blown away by it. His range is far smoother and more adept than I thought, and when he and his sister sung in simple harmony, they held everyone’s rapt attention. Band members slowly entered the fray until there were 5 more musicians on stage, but the sound never became saturated. Most of the songs, especially older ones, sounded different than they do on record. Sometimes this is a bad thing, especially if you are attached to a song sounding a certain way, but each new interpretation was just as tasteful as the original, and often even better.

My only gripe was that the show was a bit brief, and there was only a single encore before the lights came on and the cattle prods were unleashed. It was Sunday night, so no after-hours club, but apparently everyone involved with the show had late dinner reservations or were in desperate need to get home. I lingered briefly, hoping to get a chance to possibly bump into Sam Beam one more time, so maybe we could do something as silly as reminisce as about the good old days in South Florida. But he seems to be onto bigger and better things, judging by the size of the tour bus behind the theatre, not to mention the great performance of which I enjoyed every waking moment.