Artist.......: Sam Beam & Jesca Hoop
Album........: Love Letter for Fire
Label........: Sub Pop
Genre........: Alternative
Catnr........: n/a
Source.......: CD (LP)
Rip.date.....: 2016-04-14
Str.date.....: 2016-04-15
Quality......: 229kbps/44.1kHz/Joint Stereo
Url..........: http://www.jescahoop.com/
track title time
1. Welcome to Feeling 0:58
2. One Way to Pray 3:28
3. The Lamb You Lost 3:30
4. We Two Are a Moon 2:35
5. Midas Tongue 3:03
6. Know the Wild That Wants You 2:57
7. Every Songbird Says 3:23
8. Bright Lights and Goodbyes 3:43
9. Kiss Me Quick 2:44
10. Chalk It Up to Chi 2:20
11. Valley Clouds 3:20
12. Soft Place to Land 3:34
13. Sailor to Siren 3:15
Runtime 38:50
Size 64.07
Release Notes:
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Love Letter for Fire is the name of the collaborative record from songwriters
Sam Beam (Iron & Wine) and Jesca Hoop. A collection of songs steeped in the
tradition of the male/female duet where love û in its many forms - takes center
stage.
Contemplating a duets album for some time, Beam was never able to find the right
voice - until Hoop's music found its way to his stereo. Diving into her catalog
on iTunes one afternoon, specifically the album Kismet, was the spark Sam needed
to reach out to Jesca and propose the idea of writing together.
The timing could not have been better for Beam: ôI was looking to work with
another songwriter because I had never shared the songwriting responsibility
with anyone. I really enjoyed her music and it's different than mine which is
what excited me about the project."
Hoop at the time was finishing her fourth record and had never co-written
either. However she notes, ôI had the advantage of knowing Sam's music because
it had cleaned my house many times, so I was familiar with his sensibilities and
knew the combination could work." Her memory though of ôSam's pitch" for making
the record occurred once they connected in person and Beam ôthrew [the idea]
under his breath, like "If we ever write songs together.' I think he said "Let's
make an EP' and I said "Let's make an album.'"
The inspiration behind Love Letter for Fire was Sam's love of classic duets,
most of which are ones he grew up hearing on the radio. ôSome of my favorite
songs are duets, because the narrative is expanded. It's not just a monologue.
It's a conversation, and so it gets complicated. I had melodies over the years
that I'd been compiling that I thought, this sounds like a classic Kenny and
Dolly, "Islands in the Stream' kind of thing, or George and Tammy". While the
record itself is not Countrypolitan in nature, the two have carved out something
that feels wholly original and should have no trouble appealing to fans of their
previous work.
Over the course of thirteen songs Love Letter for Fire brims with joyful energy,
contrasting Beam and Hoop's songwriting styles yet never feeling forced, nor
pandering. Veering from disparate pop (ôEvery Songbird Says" / ôChalk It Up To
Chi") to introspective folk (ôOne Way to Pray" / ôSoft Place to Land") to a few
things in between (ôWelcome to Feeling" / ôMidas Tongue"), the record never
rests solely on just the two voices but rather showcases the new chapter of
songwriting each found in the collaboration. Beam notes: ô(Jesca) brought a lot
of energy and a lot of heart in places where I would be cerebral, she would
bring heart. In places where I would be steady, she would add an exclamation
point."
Recorded in Portland, Oregon with the steady hand of Tucker Martine, the album
features a collection of handpicked musicians. The band includes Rob Burger, a
frequent Iron & Wine contributor, Sebastian Steinberg (Soul Coughing, Fiona
Apple), Teddy Rankin-Parker (Primus), Eyvind Kang (Decemberists/Tzadik and
Ipecac labels) and Glenn Kotche (Wilco). This particular set of musicians had
never worked together, but quickly found themselves on equal footing. For Beam
it was a bit of a dream team: ôIt was a really fun band, and a lot less guitar
than I usually have on my [Iron & Wine] records. Tucker and the band were able
to help bring out what's inside of you that you might not know is there."
The album's title comes from the song, ôWe Two Are A Moonô and the irony of the
title and record of love songs by two folks not in love is not lost on its
creators. The idea of love in song and life is a constant and universal
denominator that everyone relates to. Hoop describes love and the songs
succinctly: ôEach song has its heat, its own trajectory. The album title
represents a kind of ôephemeral love that passes through" and then it's gone".
Beam on the other hand insists the title plays on itself in that ôis it a love
letter for fire? Or is it a love letter ready to be wasted?" and leaves it up to
the listener to come to their own conclusions.
RLS-Crc: 434F4A:E0E327E21572BF