Take a musical prodigy, some indie-rock, add inspirations from all over the world, some psych, folk and pop as well as the sounds of the accordion, ukulele, glockenspiel and horns (in addition to the more commonly found instruments in a band) mix them all together and you have Beirut.  Ok, it’s not quite that simple.

Beirut was the brainchild of musical prodigy Zach Condon, a multi-instrumentalist, who dropped out of college and travelled through Europe absorbing the influences of the continent.  By this time he had already been exposed to Mexican music, having grown up in Santa Fe, as well as wider world music from his time working in a cinema which specialised in international movies.

It was this experience and the influence which formed the basis of 2006 debut album Gulag Orkestar as Condon started recording under the name of Beirut before quickly recruiting some friends to play the music live for initial shows.

Two further albums (The Flying Club Cup in 2007 and The Rip Tide in 2011) followed as Beirut continued to make its mark on the international stage, rapidly becoming recognised as one of the most exciting live acts around.

Beirut performs at The Albert Hall on Thursday 14th August 2014.

Image credit  gomagoti and flickr under creative commons license


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