Beirut - London Kentish Town Forum
Zach Condon and co. seduce London...
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Beirut
London HMV Kentish Town Forum - May 8
Selling out within 20 minutes, touts reportedly selling tickets for as much as £90 – not many sets have been anticipated as much in 2009 as this performance by 23-year-old minor phenomenon Zach Condon and his band of compatriots that make up Beirut.
The February release of double-EP-not-really-a-new-album ‘March of the Zapotec/Holland’ may have been greeted with a pretty lukewarm reception by various circles of critics, but tonight is nothing less than a celebration of a man who has an enviable ability to seamlessley merge Eastern European and French Folk with Western pop and make it sound brilliant.
Beginning with one of their best-known songs, ‘Nantes’, is a bold and confident move, but in retrospect perhaps not the best idea as Beirut don’t find themselves in full stride until about three or four songs into tonight’s set. But if the opener may have come across as a tad flat, the undeniable brilliance of ‘Mount Wroclai’, the smile-inducing ‘Scenic World’ and the swaying ‘A Sunday Smile’ all more than make up for that. An alternative take on ‘Postcards From Italy’ is a treat to behold, as is a stiring rendition of ‘The Akara’.
Visually, it is safe to say that Beirut possess perhaps the coolest drummer ever to wield a pair of wooden sticks. Looking like Napoleon Dynamite after a few too many happy pills, tonight Nick Petree is the driving force behind the band, snare-rolling and grinning his way through the set as Condon dictates the instrumentation of ukeleles, banjos and trombones that surround him.
Finishing on an encore of Ko?ani Orkesta’s ‘Siki Siki Baba’, tonight is a stiff lesson in how to successfuly complement traditional musical forms with a contemporary twist. And it’s probably safe to say that, even if you have to stump up £90 for a ticket, it’s most definitely worth it.
Words: Nick Calafato
Photo: Louise Roberts
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Beirut live in London,
Beirut live in London, United Kingdom
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Their first performances
Their first performances were in May 2006, to support the release of their debut album, Gulag Orkestar. The music combines elements of Eastern European folk with Western pop music.
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The March of the
The March of the Zapotec/Realpeople Holland. Consequently, the anticipation crawling over the packed out Forum is tangible - almost malleable - as the seats begin to fill.
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This discovery and Condon's
This discovery and Condon's subsequent exploration of world music proved to be instrumental in the development of Beirut's sound.
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Zach Condon was born in New
Zach Condon was born in New Mexico on February 13, 1986. Condon was signed under the name of Beirut to Ba Da Bing! records, later Condon recruited some friends to play the music live and Beirut was born .... acai berry fruit benefit your health
However, the album became
However, the album became available for purchase on iTunes on January 27, almost a month before the projected release date, and was leaked onto the internet on 23 January.
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Thank you for sharing
Thank you for sharing clashmusic!
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Zach Condon, the 20-year-old
Zach Condon, the 20-year-old singer/songwriter behind Balkan pop orchestra Beirut, played his first two sold-out New York shows this summer.
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