At the time of Beirut’s debut album release it didn’t take long for me to find out, and subsequently feel extremely unaccomplished in life about, the fact that Beirut‘s songsmith and main man Zach Condon was only 19 years old.
Add into the mix the fact that he did everything himself just made me want to quit life altogether. At 21 I was chasing squirrels at 3am, stealing hoods from cars, stealing shoes from billboards, and stealing skating ramps from Universities and taking them home on the bus. I used to steal stuff when I was drunk. That’s probably why I’m here and Zach’s there, making music and wowing people. Whatevs, I’ve got you guys, right?
“The Rip Tide” is Beirut’s third album after “Gulag Orkestar” in 2006 and “The Flying Club Cup” in 2007, and the polarising “March Of The Zapotec/Holland” EP in 2009. Whilst not as grand and all-encompassing as the first two, “The Rip Tide” has more than its fair share of strong points, especially in the previously heard single “East Harlem” and “Goshen”, but also in “Sante Fe” and “Vagabond”.
For die-hard fans of Beirut you’ll love this album, and for casual fans you may just give it a skim over and be done with it, but as with previously albums I’ve done that with I’d urge you to delve into this album multiple times and feel the warmth and texture found within.
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