Archive Series Volume No. 1
Archive Series Volume No. 1 is a rarities collection by Iron & Wine, released February 24, 2015 on Beam's new record label Black Cricket Recording Co. The collection consists of unreleased home recordings and demos from the same time period as the 2002 album The Creek Drank the Cradle and the 2003 EP The Sea & The Rhythm. "Everyone's Summer of '95" was the first track to be officially released from the album.[1] [2] [3][4]
| Archive Series Volume No. 1 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | February 24, 2015 | |||
| Genre | Folk | |||
| Length | 61:27 | |||
| Label | Black Cricket Recording Co. | |||
| Producer | Sam Beam | |||
| Iron & Wine chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Archive Series Volume No. 1 | ||||
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Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 76/100[5] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [6] |
| American Songwriter | [7] |
| Exclaim! | 8/10[8] |
| Pitchfork | (7.2/10) [9] |
| PopMatters | 7/10[10] |
At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, Archive Series Volume No. 1 received an average score of 76, based on 6 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[5]
AllMusic reviewer Fred Thomas described the album as "a perfect companion piece to [The Creek Drank the Cradle] and a deeper look into what must have been an incredibly inspired and productive time for the young songwriter".[6] Alex Hudson wrote in Exclaim that the tracks were "quality material" but that the collection "doesn't have quite enough stylistic or emotional variety to hold up as a proper album".[8] Similarly, Pitchfork reviewer Stephen M. Deusner wrote that "the songs on here are surprisingly strong, such that any of them could have appeared on a proper album at any point in Beam’s decade-plus career. But the collection never sounds like the sum of its parts."[9]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Slow Black River" | 2:27 |
| 2. | "The Wind Is Low" | 3:32 |
| 3. | "Eden" | 2:43 |
| 4. | "Two Hungry Blackbirds" | 5:08 |
| 5. | "Freckled Girl" | 2:44 |
| 6. | "Judgement" | 5:40 |
| 7. | "Sing Song Bird" | 1:47 |
| 8. | "Beyond the Fence" | 6:39 |
| 9. | "Quarters in a Pocket" | 3:52 |
| 10. | "Loretta" | 2:54 |
| 11. | "Everyone's Summer of '95" | 3:10 |
| 12. | "Minor Piano Keys" | 5:17 |
| 13. | "Your Sly Smile" | 3:21 |
| 14. | "Halfway to Richmond" | 5:19 |
| 15. | "Wade Across the Water" | 2:04 |
| 16. | "Postcard" | 4:50 |
| Total length: | 61:27 | |
Personnel
- Sam Beam - vocals, guitar, banjo
References
- Evan Minsker, "Iron & Wine Launches Archival Series, Shares "Everyone's Summer of '95" and Short Film Trailer" Pitchfork, January 8, 2015.
- Harley Brown, "Iron & Wine's Sam Beam Talks 'Archive Series Volume No. 1': Exclusive First Listen" Billboard, February 17, 2015
- James Grebey, "Iron & Wine Plots Archival Album Series, Dusts Off 'Everyone's Summer of '95'" Spin, January 8, 2015
- O'Connell, Jake (24 February 2015). "Review: Iron & Wine releases choice archive material". AP Worldstream. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 29 March 2015. Retrieved 26 February 2015.
The constant is a clear Southern gothic character.
- "Archive Series Volume No. 1 – Iron & Wine". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
- Thomas, Fred. "Archive Series, Vol. 1". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 February 2015.
- "Iron & Wine: Archive Series, Vol. 1 « American Songwriter". 24 February 2015.
- Hudson, Alex (20 February 2015). "Iron & Wine - Archive Series Volume No. 1". Exclaim.ca. Retrieved 24 August 2015.
- Deusner, Stephen M. (24 February 2015). "Archive Series Volume No. 1". Pitchfork. Retrieved 26 February 2015.
- Zimmerman, Lee. Iron & Wine: Archive Series Volume No. 1. PopMatters. 11 March 2015. Retrieved 24 August 2015.