September 17, 200718 yr There is a new Beirut release: Monna Pomona (Promo Single). From what I've read on Wikipedia, apparently, this song was included in the 'Pompeii EP' but was only available through Rough Trade. I've just listened to the song moments ago and it is really wonderful, though very short (it's around 2 minutes). Enjoy!
September 18, 200718 yr Zach also released a three-song EP titled "Small Time American Bats" under the name 1971. The album was recorded in 2001-2002 and has never been officially released. I've posted it here, if anyone's interested. I'm liking what I've heard so far. The songs are very nice indeed.
September 23, 200718 yr http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEvtZJjPIFE :D:D http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hD9opKBMnho Haha, this is so funny! :lol:
September 23, 200718 yr Yay! Two new videos are available on: http://flyingclubcup.com :dance: Forks and Knives (La Fête) Un Dernier Verre (Pour la Route)
September 25, 200718 yr ^ That is so lucky! To have been there! Oh, how envious I am of you now. That was a great video. Thanks! :smiley:
September 28, 200718 yr La Banlieue Cliquot (I know this is your favourite song, Ray. So, hope you enjoy the video. :wink:) And they've added a credits page too: http://flyingclubcup.com/spip.php?rubrique2. I liked these introductions of each member. :D
October 9, 200718 yr I'm still in love with the "Nantes" take away show. A most superb effort, and it makes me love Zach that much more.
October 9, 200718 yr Also, Pitchfork ACTUALLY LIKES THE NEW ALBUM, ZOMG: More than three minutes into the Lon Gisland EP's "Elephant Gun", the horns pause, and the song lingers on a few of Zach Condon's syrupy syllables before returning to Beirut's strongest melody. It's the sound of Condon and his band shedding its layers of self-packed cultural baggage. As Pitchfork's Brandon Stosuy wrote earlier this year of Lon Gisland: "Condon has shown that, yes, there are songs behind the international flavors, that his work would be interesting even if he kept the trumpet at home." Surprisingly, Condon's horn remains in Brooklyn for the bulk of his sophomore album, The Flying Club Cup. Condon himself returns to France-- the place where he was first exposed to the Balkan music that colored much of this debut, Gulag Orkestar. It's clearly a place he loves. "Once we got there, we kept trying to go to other places, but we didn't feel like traveling so much as being in Paris," he said when I interviewed him a year ago. It's reflected here, with both Gallic brass and accordion and song titles that reference French cities and locations. Crucially, however, Flying Club Cup would be a triumph even with those layers stripped away; that's not to say that the cultural patina obscures the "real" songs underneath, but its removal allows us to sidestep mind-numbing questions about authenticity and intention. Flying Club Cup deftly showcases Condon's gifts: "Nantes" sounds exotic without directly referencing a particular era or feeling, and "A Sunday Smile"-- despite being about specific people and places-- evokes universal sensations such as sleepiness and warmth. "Un Dernier Verre (Pour la Route)" and "Guyamas Sonora" show off Condon's increased love of piano-driven pop songcraft-- as well his band's frequent trick of introducing the best part of the song (here, the way the lithe percussion and ukulele contrast with the heavy accordion and his vocal layering) three-quarters of the way through. "In the Mausoleum" begins with some "Come On! Feel the Illinois!"-ish piano (Sufjan Stevens playing the U.S. cultural cannibal to Condon's worldly connoisseur), but what I like best is the violins, arranged by Final Fantasy's Owen Pallett, which are strong throughout the record and provide a perfect, light-as-lashes counter to Condon's thick instrumentation. Vocal layering is another Beirut gift, but it also weighs heavily on each track, which is appropriate when nearly every song is about feeling weary or old beyond your years. But despite the well-traveled themes, Condon's vocal melodies, as on standout "Cliquot", are still dangerously romantic, veering closely to musical theater. Condon also does well by "Forks and Knives (Le Fête)", where the instruments hold back to give him more room to sing. And here, once you get past this spent-cigarette, empty-hotel story he's selling, it's obvious that what Condon lacks in lyrical ability, he more than makes up for in prosody. He has an impressive flow, a delicate glide that perfectly compliments the oft-commented-upon exoticism that tends to divide Beirut listeners. On The Flying Cup Club, and maybe on all of Beirut's records, this exoticism takes the form not of alienation but of a search for a familiar place within what seems (or sounds) unfamiliar, difficult, or repulsive. It's the process of searching that untethers the record from any limiting sense of place, be it an Arrondissement in Paris or a village in the Balkans.
October 9, 200718 yr New video updates: Guyamas Sonor, In the Mausoluem, St. Apollonia and Cherbourg. I think I like St. Apollonia's video the most now. I just love the idea of shooting it at night like that. I found this interview with Zach through the band's forum. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuIDZ5TVXpUHe sings some Sufjan Stevens in it too! :wacky:
October 16, 200718 yr The last two videos: Sunday Smile and The Flying Club Cup. Beirut's Flying Club Blogothèque Vids Headed for DVD The internet is pretty neat, what with the whole "world wide" aspect of it and this streaming video thing that's all the rage these days. But sometimes a few too many abrupt buffering breaks can make one long for the good old days of the DVD. Beirut, no strangers to longing for the good old days, know this well. So, together with La Blogothèque, they're planning to compile all those lovely Flying Club Cup live videos that have been blowing up cyberspace (and your friendly Forkcast) onto one nice little DVD. What videos, you say? Please report directly to the Pitchfork search box, change the drop menu item to "Forkcast", type in "Beirut", and hit "Go". (Or check them out here.) Those videos, my friend, the final two of which just went up this morning. You ought have a look! There's one for each track on The Flying Club Cup, and they're all rather lovely. The DVD-- titled Cheap Magic Inside-- will in fact span an hour and contain additional footage never before seen on the interwebs! Blog and band plan to sell this self-released article on Beirut's upcoming European tour, which kicks off November 6 in Manchester, England. Plans for some sort of U.S. release are also in the works. Alas, no word yet on the cinematograph edition. Artwork:
October 17, 200718 yr I really like this music. I downloaded almost all his work yesterday and I enjoy every minute of it. His new album is magical! And I'm going to see him in Amsterdam, 15th of November. I'm excited! :)
October 17, 200718 yr Lucky you! And I'm glad you've enjoyed Beirut's music. Oh god this so unfair! I really REALLY have to see them live one day... :(
October 26, 200718 yr MTV and Teen Vogue got to them!! Oh! :sick: Here's the MTV interview: http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?id=1571915&vid=181540.
October 26, 200718 yr http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20057685_20057687_20153983,00.html I don't know which part I love more..the song or the fact that Natalie Portman likes them. :D
October 27, 200718 yr Oh wow, how cool! Now I like her even more!! :D Hope she gets the opportunity to sing in one of their tracks again. That would be just perfect! :smiley: I like My Night With the Prostitute From Marseille too!! Thanks a lot for this, Annie! :kiss:
November 26, 200718 yr http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/showthread.php?p=2188468#post2188468 Little summary of my post in the download thread: I saw them in Paradiso, Amsterdam. Like it very very very very much and they've recorded it!(Soundboard quality). You can download it by following upperlink. :) Cheers!
December 6, 200718 yr oooh beirut is super, in the new album they have a song called "guyamas sonora" and it's a city in mexico :D they just spelled it wrong :laugh3: they cover is also a picture of that city so i like it a lot, plus a friend's girlfriend lives there so they were all excited :laugh3:
January 23, 200818 yr Beirut is godly. ;) Yes, Zach Condon is indeed a god. :D This thread deserves to be up top. :P
January 23, 200818 yr Yes, Zach Condon is indeed a god. :D This thread deserves to be up top. :P It really does!! :D I will be posting some pictures sometime soon. :smug:
January 23, 200818 yr Ooooh yay!! Even though I love all their songs (I can't seem to think of one I don't like or hate...), my go-to song is definitely 'Elephant Gun'. It is one of the most beautiful, joyful songs ever. It lifts my spirits everytime. It reminds me of a gigantic Turkish new year's eve party with champagne and belly dancers...:lol: :heart:
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