Perhaps, as this is the third long-player from the group, this is a sign of them coming of age.
Perhaps, as this is the third long-player from the group, this is a sign of them coming of age.
(Pompeii Records)
When you walk into a friend’s living room and spy a Persian rug on the floor you can bet that you will find at least one Beirut album on their shelf, probably accompanied by a smattering of French film and a hand carved bowl from their last trip to Peru. Beirut’s signature sound, -world-infused-magpie folk – is music for those people who love far away vistas, foreign romance and a certain wistful melancholy.
What’s so great about The Rip Tide is that you don’t feel as if you are lost in the musical equivalent of a teenage inter-railing trip. This album is very mature.
Zach Condon’s song writing has never been poor – in fact it has always been fairly excellent – but there are some who, when they put on a record, would like to know that they are listening to a piece of popular music and not the Salvation Army Band. Those critics should now be silenced.
Take for instance, the rhythmic simplicity of Santa Fe and its steady synth riff, the soft and mellow piano on Goshen, with simple – but achingly effective – harmonies. It’s all positively minimalistic, by Beirut’s standards . And it’s great.
There is enough brass, accordion and hand-held percussion to keep die-hard Beirut fans happy, Vagabond is a great example of the band’s tried and tested winning formula, but on The Rip Tide Condon and co. have found a way of using their trademark instrumentation more deftly, creating a sound that is possibly all the more nostalgic and wistful for its restraint.
Perhaps, as this is the third long-player from the group, this is a sign of them coming of age. Condon, the boy who moved from NYC to Paris at 16, has definitely come a long way…