Iron & Wine + Band of Horses at the Wiltern in Los Angeles

One of my favorite places to listen to any genre of music has and will always be the Wiltern. Doesn’t matter if its metal, pop, or folky catchy songwriter music. Iron and Wine fits this demo perfectly, as they stopped by, along with co-headliner Band Of Horses, for a headlining date on their current tour together. This show did not disappoint, as Samuel Ervin Beam (better known affectionately as Iron & Wine), took to the mic and calmly went into “On Your Wings,” and followed it up with “Yellow Jacket.” The band is an amazing mixture of musicians, with Samuel leading the way amongst an incredibly talented backing band. The Wine to his Iron, you might say. Such effortless song writing lends to his wonderful voice, evoking childlike flashbacks you’d see in a movie somewhere, playing and running in an open field. I&W give you that feeling, watching something very special unfold live. Nothing too flashy, just exceptional raw talent in every member of Iron & Wine.

Band Of Horses singer Ben Bridwell was already sharing the stage with Iron & Wine, as both himself and Iron & Wine have collaborated on an EP of covers that redefine what their original versions sounded like. BOH blasted right into “The First Song,” literally the first song on their 2006 album Everything All The Time. Following up that indie rock energy with “NW Apt,” the band seems to be having fun, and their bassist Matt Gentling is bouncing all over the stage with that quintessential pop punkness of bands doing this with far less time then BOH. The band brought the energy down for the tear jerking pain of lost love in “No Ones Gonna Love You.” The crowd was singing along with the band, becoming a choir at times, turning the Wiltern into a cathedral of emotion wrapped in color.

The bands continue on this tour for a few more weeks. Make sure to catch them when you can, be it together, or separate. Both are exceptional live.

Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!

Upcoming Tour Dates:
9/26  Del Mar, CA @ The Sound at Del Mar
9/27  Las Vegas, NV @ Bel-Aire Backyard
9/28  Chandler, AZ @ Gila River Resorts & Casinos – Wild Horse Pass
9/30  Flagstaff, AZ @ Pepsi Amphitheater
10/2  Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues Anaheim
10/3  Santa Barbara, CA @ The Arlington Theatre
More information here.

IRON & WINE

BAND OF HORSES

All Photo Credit: John McCrary