Sam Beam, who makes music under the hard and drunken moniker “Iron & Wine,” has a wife, a few kids, and a little plot of land outside of Austin, Texas. His albums—rustic, lo-fi outfits of hushed whispers and acoustic guitar—are best with whiskey, a warm fire, and a loved one nearby. But in 2005, he started upping the ante; his Woman King EP had more complex instrumentation and song structure, much like his stellar In the Reins collaboration with Calexico that year. And consider the ante upped: his latest, The Shepard’s Dog, is his best yet; at once warm, comforting, and even daring. Is that a sitar in the beginning of “White Tooth Man”? Who knows. It’s been on repeat in my iTunes, nonetheless. With Califone.

Listen to a sample of Iron & WIne’s “White Tooth Man.”

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Mon., Dec. 3, 8 p.m., 2007