Beirut “Gulag Orkestar” (Best of the Decade)

Zach Condon’s onetime solo project Beirut (which has since grown into a fully fledged band) has one of the most consistently solid outputs of the decade. Though the band only has a couple full lengths and a handful of EPs under their belt, the high level of quality throughout each is unvarying. I could focus on any one of a large number of singles as evidence of “Best of the Decade” material (“Elephant Gun,” “Venice,” and “A Sunday Smile” come to mind) but perhaps it is better to start where it all began, with Condon’s debut LP, Gulag Orkestar.

Though it lacks some of the refined production of his later work (most of it was recorded in Condon’s bedroom) it is still the best example of what makes Beirut’s music different from nearly every other “indie rock” band out there. For starters Beirut isn’t “indie rock” at all, it is essentially folk music, heavily influenced by Eastern European brass, Klezmer, and Balkan folk tunes. The album’s opening three tracks “The Gulag Orkestar,” “Prenzlauerberg,” and “Brandenburg” are all terrific examples of the period where Condon wore these influences boldly on his sleeve.

Some of the best tracks, however, show the nascent stages of Beirut’s move towards more “Western” pop. “Mount Wroclai (Idle Days)” and “Scenic World” show Condon finding his own sound amongst competing influences. Even in these more pop-oriented pieces Condon’s airy baritone makes it sound as if they are from another place and time entirely. The masterpiece of the record is definitely “Postcards from Italy” however, a radiant stroll through the hills with a ukulele and trumpet. “Postcards” was not only one of the band’s greatest achievements, but also a marker of where they would go with Flying Cup Club, the band’s next (and even better critically received) full length.

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Also: Beirut @ Pitchfork Music Festival 2009