Caught Live: Iron & Wine + Markéta Irglová @ Hackney Empire, London

Opinion has been, as they say, 'divided' on Iron & Wine’s recent work. Not so much on the quality of Sam Beam’s still-earthy songwriting, however; or even the ever-progressing content of his recorded output. It's more a case of early-uptake fans growing more and more to dislike – despise, even – his increasingly loud, jam-based, '70s-Californian-funk hybrid sound in the live arena. In that context, this show can perhaps be viewed as a little sop to those fans and their rather limited worldview, offering as it does the prospect of seeing Mr. Beam unplugged, de-funked, and maybe a bit more like it would have been if you’d caught him back when his CV still read full-time geography teacher/part-time muscian.

First, though, we're left to properly absorb the beauty of this stunning, rarely-utilized venue, with the generally banal but occasionally semi-quirky work of support act Markéta Irglová for company. The former Oscar-winner is one of Beam’s honey-voiced backing singers these days, and tonight she's chosen to leave the day job aside for half an hour.

At the risk of being blunt, while the setup of twin vocalists with piano, bass and a fascinating tambourine/drum thingy that sounds like paper skimming waves is intrinsically interesting, the Czech's ethereal-by-numbers material sadly is not. Following a lengthy, hippyish between-song sermon about how love is good and other things might be less so, we’re treated to the low point of the set: a number that genuinely sounds like it could be a Whitney Houston ballad with the tune removed. Harsh as this might sound, the songs quite simply aren't up to scratch. Pretty, sure. But also pretty poor.

To show he’s not completely capitulating to those old-school purists, Sam Beam shuffles onstage with a five-piece backing band in tow. Where many inside The Empire this evening will have been anticipating the pared-down greatness of just the man and his guitar, we’re actually being given a full-band experience - albeit one that's markedly quieter.

This is no complaint, though; the gentle reimaginings of newer tracks like ‘Tree by The River’ and ‘Godless Brother In Love’ are greeted reverently, and rightly so. There’s a sense of grace and care here that has a tendency to absent itself in favour of gnarled bombast when the band is in full-on rock-out mode, and the songs soar because of it: pared down to its dread-inducing, sex-filled core, ‘Black Candle’ is here transformed into a devilish, folky nightmare; elsewhere, ‘Naked As We Came’ becomes a transcendent trip into the deep, soft woods of the soul, its cascading melody cutting beautifully through the spare stabs of piano.

The hush of the audience (a lamentably rare occurrence at a gig in the capital) is remarked upon with a wry grin by Beam: "I thought you guys liked to riot!", he comments, before apologising for his poor taste. During another aside, he jokes about his Roundhouse show earlier this year: "I had a cold... It was terrible. But I got your money - that’s the important thing!". His humour proves every bit as dry as his subsequent rendition of ‘Weary Memory’ is heartfelt and, indeed, heartrending. While many will still balk, meanwhile, at his sporadic use of sax and synth of late, few fans would surely argue with this evening's rearranged ‘Me & Lazarus’: a gentle meander of loose beats and soft strokes, it clearly benefits from having kinder attention paid to its sweet harmonies.

Seemingly ending on a wonderful (if to-be-expected) version of ‘He Lays In The Reins’, we're then left to play what the singer teasingly calls "the encore game", and a portion of the audience finally get to behold what they've been longing for all night: Beam and his guitar, alone, centre stage. He plays ‘The Trapeze Swinger’ like a musical and emotional hurricane, and it’s little short of breathtaking. The silence between phrases is perceptible almost as a sound itself.

While there would be a ton of fun to be had the following evening at Iron & Wine's full-band electric show across town in Shepherd's Bush, this is a reminder of I&W as was - a smart, likeable guy with a huge raw talent playing his tender folk songs for anyone willing to listen. Overall, a resounding triumph of a back-to-basics show.

As mentioned above, Sam Beam was joined by a full band the night after his Hackney Empire acoustic show for a fully-electric performance at the O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire. Go here to view a gallery of Anni Timms' photos from that gig.

Thanks to ItIsRebecca for posting the following video from the Hackney show: