Beirut
March of The Zapotec

4
...according to our Brian on 13 February 2009.

Now that Zach Condon has been treading the boards for a while now, each new release is possibly viewed with increasing weariness as his schtick is under fire from heartless critics questioning his soul amidst dubious claims of cultural tourism. Hey, you all loved the first record, right? Didn't bother you THEN? I'm sorry but this is the music the man loves and as far as I can tell he's mining a rich stream of beautiful music, he puts on a blistering show that has the hairs on your neck standing up and on the first section of his new twin pack/split themed release 'March of the Zapotec / Realpeople : Holland' he's dishing out Mexican funeral themed folk. Even though the geographical focus has shifted across the globe, he's still distinctly Beirut and the first 6 songs on this record are going to more than delight fans old & new with their parping brass, skittery marching percussion & delicious undercurrents. Phil has just been reminded of Calexico. Except, I hate to admit it, we think this guy writes better songs. If you're a bit tired of his pan-global gypsy folk assault you can always skip to the 2nd segment which we find a little upsetting. It's not all that bad but is basically the flipside of where young Zach could have gone with his vision under the moniker Realpeople, i.e, slightly irritating and underwhelming synthpop that for all its perkiness, appears a tad pointless & insipid compared to his usual output. We're reminded on one track of Leeds' Printed Circuit but honestly, nowhere near as fun! However, it's an interesting contrast that serves well to highlight just what a delight this man's (un)usual music is to many people so stick to the full-on assault Zach and maybe put the kiddie pop out under the original alias because it's a terrible misrepresentation! CD & twin vinyl!

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What their label says...

This is Zach COndon's label, its first release will be new recordings from BEIRUT: After the widely acclaimed 2007 album The Flying Club Cup, which hit many album of the year lists including the NME, Uncut, Q, The Sun and The Telegraph, the extremely talented young songwriter and musician Zach Condon returns with his third record under the guise of Beirut. The full-length album entitled March Of The Zapotec is comprised of two EPs. The first, and album namesake, is a foray into Mexican folk music with the help of an obscure small-town Mexican funeral band. The second is Holland, a bedroom electro-synth pop wonder, originally an idea for Zach’s previous incarnation before Beirut, when he went by the name of Realpeople. For the past year, Beirut has alternated between touring and writing new material, Zach recording in any style that struck his fancy. Some early discussions about doing some soundtrack recording for a film being shot in Mexico morphed into a new idea… What about hiring a local Mexican band to help record some songs based on new material? After finding the band through a friend’s mother, hiring a translator, and catching a plane down to Oaxaca, Zach made his way out to the tiny weaver village of Teotitlan del Valle, where he met the nineteen members of The Jimenez Band. The ensuing weeks of recording, rewriting and relating are documented in a series of short films, which will be released online prior to album release.

After a 30 second instrumental intro of a crazed sounding street circus band, we’re introduced to ‘La Llorna’, the horn section meshing with Zach’s soft vocals floating and layered over the trumpets and tubas. The song turns into a clash of horns and cymbals, introducing accordions and strings along the way. ‘The Akara’ starts with a dramatic horn section, playing morose, wilting chords. A light acoustic ukulele skips in, followed by stomping snares and Zach singing like he’s the last in line at a funeral march, with melancholy lyrics and sighing trumpets. The fusion of both worlds is nigh on perfect, with neither treading toes. ‘On A Bayonet’, which features alto and tenor saxophone by Chris Taylor of Grizzly Bear, is a short instrumental song laden with heartbreak and a mournful horn section from an imaginary Ellington Suite tripping over the southern part of the border. The last of the March Of The Zapotec collection, ‘The Shrew’, is lighter in mood. Set to a threestep waltz it starts as a beautiful rolling ballad singing of a lost love; “How long she’s been gone? / I sighed…”. It soon gathers pace and crescendos into a full blown frenzy of horns, drums, accordions and strings only to stop, and slow down to its original pace. A wonderful example of how this small folk combo, Condon’s incredible flair for musical composition, and fresh artistic vision have been beautifully united in a dizzying array of modern expression. The second part of this double release, Holland, collects a series of songs conceived and completed at home. ‘My Night With a Prostitute From Marseille’ was on the Big Change digitalonly, charity compilation on iTunes (compiled by Natalie Portman). It is with this track that Holland begins, all digital future-synth and drum machine, and Condon is let loose writing his version of 80’s sounding pop. Bridging the gap between intelligent songwriting and unabashed pop fervour, it’s clear Condon is having fun with this second set of songs yet also letting us into his very own private world of songwriting and personal history. ‘Venice’, which previously appeared on a compilation by The Believer magazine, begins with the ambience of a Boards of Canada track as if in tandem with Ryuichi Sakamoto, with the ghostly horns briefly gliding back into view. ‘My Wife, Lost in the Wild’ layers multi-tracked vocals with strings and a continuous beat with forceful keys. Holland closes out with an insanely catchy instrumental ‘No Dice’ reminiscent of early 90s house, littered with smiling synth. It serves as a marvelously joyful send off to a most thoughtful two-for-one. Combined, these two EPs in the shape of an album represent the totality of Zach Condon's work over the past year. It is further testament towards the inventiveness and intimacy he creates as Beirut, a band which started as one person sounding like twelve and has developed over the past few years to distinguish itself with a particular style and sound. No matter what inspirations jumpstart one song to the next, the undercurrent that continues to emerge is the realization that Zach Condon is indeed a singular artist creating his very own vision of the world’s sound. And whether he's being inspired by Balkan folk, French chanteuse, Mexican troubadour, '80s synth pop or '90s house, the common thread remains Zach's ability to make a simple melody sound both artistically unique and endlessly familiar. March of the Zapotec marks the continuing emergence of a musician who has only shown an inkling of where he is headed. And while the road may be long, every stop along the way is filled with its own treats.