Showing posts with label the rip tide. Show all posts
Showing posts with label the rip tide. Show all posts
Saturday, October 15, 2011
video: Beirut - East Harlem on Letterman
could this song be any more perfect? I think not. a lovely performance of a gem from The Rip Tide.
Friday, September 9, 2011
Friday, August 12, 2011
record review: Beirut - The Rip Tide
When Sufjan Stevens started making music, he proposed that he would devote an album to each of our great country’s fifty states. And while Michigan and Come on Feel the Illinoise are stunning and gorgeous albums, there wasn’t much of a chance (from a time-constriction point of view) for Mr. Stevens to complete his task—unless he grouped states together.
On the other hand, Zach Condon—the heartthrob prodigy behind Santa Fe-based Beirut presented an equally compelling yet much more doable task. Since his breathtaking debut, Gulag Orkestar, Condon’s musical vision has been to fuse world music with indie sensibility and plenty of lush, layered sounds—horns, percussion, strings—one country or world region at a time. Gulag was inspired by the music of the Balkans; The Flying Club Cup nodded toward France; the double EP March of the Zapotec/Holland simultaneously tackled Mexican music and the Netherlands.
On his third full length album, the one thing that ties each of Condon's songs together is that they all give you the unshakable feeling that you are at a beach. It all starts with the lyrics in opener “A Candle’s Fire” that mention the allure of campfires. Indeed, the lyrics found on The Rip Tide are the strongest and clearest that Condon’s ever written. This is especially striking in light of the fact that Condon has insisted time and time again that his lyrics are more a mode of vocal delivery than anything else—he used to mumble because he wanted his voice to be heard as an instrument rather than a way to deliver poetry.
Perhaps the most striking thing about this record is Condon’s vocals. They’re clearer and more precise, and they really set the mood for the entire album. As always, Condon’s songwriting is simply superb; “East Harlem” and “Port of Call” are two of the strongest things he’s ever released (although “East Harlem” has been kicking around for a while, creeping to the surface for air every so often at concerts). All in all, The Rip Tide is an unquestionably wonderful album, and irritatingly listenable. It’s also much more accessible than his previous albums, because he leaves the baroque-elements to the music and adopts a more normative approach to singing. Yet, it still sounds like Beirut.
That being said, Condon’s musical evolution on The Rip Tide is both swift and natural; he sounds as he always has—at ease and in control, yet the musical progression that he’s made here is vast. Condon is no longer only experimenting with what makes a country’s folk music interesting—he’s actually emulating nature. The Rip Tide is the perfect way to encompass the ocean. The Rip Tide—therefore, isn’t simply the reflection of a certain ethnic group’s music: it harmoniously blends together all of the wonderful elements which contribute to the unparalleled happiness we gain on those weekends at the coast. And for a person who misses the Pacific Ocean like a junkie misses their needle, it’s a much needed source of comfort and joy.
4.7/5
The Rip Tide is now available for purchase digitally on itunes. You can stream the entire thing HERE. It hits your local record store on August 30th.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Monday, July 18, 2011
Beirut announce Chicago show (+tour dates)
Beirut will play Congress Theatre on Monday September 26. Tickets on sale Wednesday at 10AM. Get them HERE
Tour Dates:
07/07 – Republic of Serbia @ Exit Festival
07/09 – Slovakia @ Pohoda
07/12 – Arles, France @ Arles Fest
07/14 – Meco, Portugal @ Super Bock Super Rock
07/16 – Valencia, Spain @ Benicassim Festival
07/18 – Lyon, France @ Les Nuits de Fourviere
07/20 – Nyon, Switzerland @ Paleo Festival
07/29 – Portland, ME @ State Theater
07/31 – Montreal, QC @ Osheaga
08/02 – Toronto, ON @ The Phoenix
08/04 – Toronto, ON @ The Phoenix w/ Owen Pallett
08/05 – Sun. Aug. 7 – Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza
08/10 – Vancouver, BC @ Commodore
08/12 – Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom
08/14 – San Francisco, CA @ Outside Lands
09/02 – Dorset, UK @ End of Road Festival
09/04 – Stradbally, Ireland @ Electric Picnic
09/06 – Manchester, UK @ Manchester Academy
09/08 – Amsterdamn, Netherlands @ Paradiso
09/12 – Paris, France @ Olympia
09/14 – Brussels, Belgium @ AB
09/16 – London, UK @ Brixton Academy
09/21 – New York, NY @ Terminal 5
09/22 – New York, NY @ Terminal 5
09/28 – Denver, CO @ Fillmore Auditorium
10/04 – Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre
10/09 – St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
10/11 – Royal Oak, MI @ Royal Oak Music Hall
10/25 – Richmond, VA @ The National
10/27 – Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse
10/29 – Austin, TX @ Stubbs Waller Creek
11/11 – Cincinnati, OH @ Bogarts
11/13 – Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory
The new album, The Rip Tide will be released on August 30 but snag a taste below:
Beirut - A Candle's Fire [mp3]
review forthcoming.
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