Beirut

Beirut is a US indie folk band from Santa Fe, New Mexico, active since 2006. It begins as the solo project of Zach Condon, who records and performs under his own name as well as the Beirut alias, before developing into a larger group with a shifting line-up. The project is based in Berlin, Germany and grows into a band rather than remaining a one-person recording vehicle.

Formation and early work

Before Beirut, Condon records electronic music under the name Realpeople. He starts that project as a teenager, making music influenced by The Magnetic Fields. Beirut takes shape after he travels through Europe and becomes exposed to Balkan music, including the work of Boban Marković Orkestar and Goran Bregović. That experience leads directly to the first Beirut album, Gulag Orkestar, which is released in 2006.

Gulag Orkestar is largely recorded by Condon alone using Pro Tools, with Jeremy Barnes contributing percussion and some violin parts. The first Beirut performances take place in New York in May 2006, supporting the album’s release.

Band line-up and live performances

Beirut operates with a flexible membership rather than a fixed line-up. Members associated with the group include Jeremy Barnes, Kristin Ferebee, Kelly Pratt, Perrin Cloutier, Paul Collins, Zach Condon, Nick Petree, Ben Lanz, Kyle Resnick, Aaron Arntz, Jon Natchez, Greg Paulus, Jason Poranski and Tracy Pratt. Live performances feature instruments including cello, accordion, guitar, mandolin, ukulele, drums, violin, organ, keys, tambourine, baritone saxophone, glockenspiel, trumpet and euphonium.

At different points, the live band includes Perrin Cloutier on cello and accordion, Jason Poranski on guitar, mandolin and ukulele, Nick Petree on drums, Kristin Ferebee on violin, Paul Collins on organ, keys, tambourine and ukulele, Jon Natchez on baritone saxophone, mandolin and glockenspiel, and Kelly Pratt on trumpet and euphonium.

Albums and EPs

After Gulag Orkestar, Beirut releases The Flying Club Cup in 2007. Condon draws on French music while writing it, including Jacques Brel, and spends time living in Paris. The album uses a combination of home recording and sessions with the live band, giving it a more organic sound.

The group later releases The Rip Tide in 2011, No No No in 2015, Gallipoli in 2019 and Artifacts in 2022. Its EPs include Lon Gisland, Pompeii, Elephant Gun, March of the Zapotec & Realpeople: Holland, East Harlem and The Berlin-Albuquerque Sessions. The Elephant Gun EP includes a cover of Jacques Brel’s “Le Moribond”.

Hiatuses and later work

In November 2006, Condon is briefly hospitalised for extreme exhaustion, and the band cancels the rest of the tour. It resumes performing in March 2007. After further touring strain and a period away from the spotlight in 2008, Condon returns in 2009 with the double EP March of the Zapotec & Realpeople: Holland. One part is partly recorded in Mexico with the Mexican band Jimenez and has a South American influence, while the other revives the Realpeople name for a set of electronic tracks.