wise blood artisans

sam beam

I thought it would be nice to feature artists that come from the South. There is someting different about the South, and especially their artistic vision. Perhaps it is the Bible Belt, perhaps it is the ugly legacy of slavery, perhaps it is the simplicity, there is no way to know. Flannery O'connor, herself from the South, placed her pen on that difference time and time again. She even descibed Southerners has having wise blood: there is something distinct about Southern Culture. There is something even grotesque about the South. My contention is that Sam Beam of Iron and Wine carries out the grotesque vision of artistry with his music--he grew up in South Carolina, and lives in Florida. All of his songs carry conversations with death and new life. There is something violent yet sublime when he breaths about love. The musical medium is very raw and low-fi: it is a captivating, effective, grotesque, and thus compelling medium. His music never fails to be redemptive, as all of O'connor's fiction sought to redeem the South as well.