i get that. that 'rambling' phase he seems to have fully embraced now started about there, on Leaves. I remember really not liking that album at first. It has slowly turned into one of my favourites though. I think Benji is perfect. There was a lot of that rambling (i'm just calling it that to refer to what he does now) but it really worked for me on that album. Lyrics were painfully personal and it was kind of a musical revelation to me.
Have you heard the Desertshore albums?
this one is really really good. It kind of sounds exactly like a regular Sun Kil Moon album from that phase, but I think the guys from that band also played with SKM live.