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Gulag Orkestar
 
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Gulag Orkestar

BeirutMP3 Music
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)

Price: $5.49
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  • Original Release Date: May 9, 2006
  • Format - Music: MP3
  • Compatible with MP3 Players (including with iPod®), iTunes, Windows Media Player
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  Song Title Time Price  
Play   1. The Gulag Orkestar 4:38 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   2. Prenzlauerberg 3:46 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   3. Bandenburg 3:38 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   4. Postcards From Italy 4:17 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   5. Mount Wroclai (Idle Days) 3:15 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   6. Rhineland (Heartland) 3:58 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   7. Scenic World 2:08 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   8. Bratislava 3:17 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   9. The Bunker 3:13 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 10. The Canals Of Our City 2:21 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 11. After The Curtain 2:54 $0.99  Buy MP3 
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Customer Reviews

The instruments all blend very nicely together. The Lunar Camel  |  6 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
77 of 82 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars An amazing debut album May 11, 2006
Format:Audio CD
Largely the work of an ambitious youngster named Zach Condon, Gulag Orkestar is an indie rock album filtered through the mind of a teenager who dropped out of high school to travel across Europe and soak in as much culture and music as possible. The result is something that sounds a bit like the Microphones crossed with Neutral Milk Hotel. It might be the only rock album you hear that doesn't contain any guitars, and it conveys an emotional and worldly power of the likes I've not heard in some time.

Largely inspired by Balkan folk music, the album moves through mournful ballads and more upbeat tracks (that sound more like the work of a 10-plus member ensemble) with ease, layering horns, stringed instruments, ukeleles, mandolins, glockenspiel, drum, organs, piano, and other percussion under the soulful vocals of Condon himself, who has a similar range and style as Andrew Bird. The disc opens with the album-titled track of "The Gulag Orkestar," and after some warbling horns and cascading piano, the track turns into a shuffling march that finds Condon soaring over the top of it all with his rich croon.

The album really hits stride with the gorgeous "Bandenburg," which finds deft mandolins playing out over heaving drums and percussion as accordions wheeze and the track builds gracefully with delightful horn sections and layered vocals. "Postcards From Italy" follows, and it may very well be the best track on the disc, moving along with a playful opening section that mixes shuffling mandolin, piano and horns before shifting halfway through to a more delicate (and reflective) section that completely tugs at the heartstrings before bursting into a celebratory ending that's absolutely stunning.

The second half of the album finds Condon taking a few more chances, and amazingly he pulls things off just about every time. "Scenic World" uses a programmed casio-beat that sounds straight out of Magnetic Fields, but layers horns and accordion over the top for something completely unique while "After The Curtain" takes the non-traditional instrumentation and runs it through some filters, giving the track a slight electronic tinge without making it ever feel out of place. It seems like every year there's an album that comes completely out of nowhere and really stuns me, and this year that title is easily held by Beirut with Gulag Orkestar. An outstanding debut album, and easily one of my favorite releases of the year so far.

(from almost cool music reviews)
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars An amazing debut album! April 22, 2007
Format:Audio CD
Finding out about Beirut was one of the best things to happen to me (musically) in 2007. When I first heard their EP "Lon Gisland", I quickly proceeded to dig back in the past works by this fascinating act.

Beirut blends a lo-fi sound not unlike a group of East European gipsies with a folk feel like Sufjan Stevens with leader Zach Condon's voice coming across much like David Byrne. The result is an exquisite and upbeat album that makes your heart pound with excitement making you want to jump, clap and laugh, with "Postcards From Italy" being one of the highlights.

Thinking that this was Beirut's debut album just blows me away. If you like it, by all means pick up "Lon Gisland".
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24 of 27 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Play, Orkestar! June 14, 2006
Format:Audio CD
To be honest, when I think of Elephant 6 bands I don't usually think of Balkan folk music. But with the release of Beirut's "Gulag Orkestar," I may have to revise my thinking.

This new band consists of teenage musician Zach Condon, along with people from Neutral Milk Hotel and A Hawk and a Hacksaw, making bittersweet folkpop and danceable marches. Imagine a band of slightly drunk gypsies on parade, and you'll have the general idea of how it sounds.

It opens slow, with a gentle piano and blaring horns. The title track meanders in circles and finally dies away... only to be reborn as a swaying march. Halfway through, Condon joins in with some mournful wails and equally mournful singing. That turns around in "Prenzluerberg," where the singing is just as melancholy, but the music is a cheerier march.

From there on, the trio tries out those styles and everything in between -- rattly folk with tambourines and horns, danceable folkpop, and tinkly klezmer music. Yes, tinkly klezmer. They get downright happy in "Scenic World," a colorful glockenspiel song that is just barely grounded by some quick violins.

After that, "Gulah Orkestar" is pretty upbeat, with a string of swaying marches and upbeat folk acoustics. The album's finale is a bit of a head-scratcher, though. "After the Curtain" is a relatively bare-bones song with Condon singing over applause and a dancing glockenspiel. I don't know how to fit that one in.

Basically this album is what happens when an American teenager drops out and crosses Eastern Europe, soaking up the folk music as he goes.

And it's a good thing Condon's musical talents are being backed by experienced musicians, so we can get a bittersweet, atmospheric taste of whatever he heard there. The main problem is that the less folky songs don't really fit in -- without them, the album would have been a lot better. But as it is, it's a remarkable achievement.

Condon has a pretty deep voice for someone so young, and he fills it with the longing and beauty that traditional singing often has. And he's assisted by some very talented musicians: Jeremy Barnes and Heather Trost, both of whom work in the psych-folk band A Hawk and a Hacksaw. So of course, they have a good ear for this sort of thing.

So how do they manage? Soundwise, it's like someone took the gypsy out of Gogol Bordello and slapped it on Neutral Milk Hotel. The songs are brimming with violins, horns, accordion, mandolin, pianos, ukeleles, glockenspiel and many others. These instruments are so smoothly blended that it sounds like at least a dozen people are playing at any one time, and that they've played this music their whole lives.

"Gulag Orkestar" is a pretty, heart-tugging album that will make you think of quaint European villages in the springtime. Definitely worth listening to, many times.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars :)
they have a nice sound. the case was cracked a little bit, but was in good condition. love the 2nd track. thanks.
Published 1 month ago by E
5.0 out of 5 stars great album
as all the other beirut ones!
I bought it since I love 'The Flying Club Cup'. If you liked it, you shouldn't be disappointed by this one, great mood and music.
Published 4 months ago by Luc Renambot
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Album
Love lots of the songs. Beirut is a band that takes you somewhere far away. That's what I love about those guys.
Published 4 months ago by Erica Hill
4.0 out of 5 stars Nice job
Nice job but I can't say that it's one of the best from their albums although as a decent fun of them I have already bought it!
Published 5 months ago by Lampros
5.0 out of 5 stars The album is great - these reviews are hilarious
Listen to the album.
Then read all of the reviews here rated 3 stars or less.
Snobbery is most funny when it's obvious to everyone but the perpetrators.
Published 16 months ago by Fortunate Son
5.0 out of 5 stars Gulag
I received the product I ordered quickly and in the condition that was expected. I will make future purchases from this seller.
Published 16 months ago by Persiflage
4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating
Intelligent and interesting. Unusual selection of instruments, definitely deviates from the mainstream, but rhythmic, melodious, haunting. Excellent. Read more
Published 21 months ago by jnorthup
4.0 out of 5 stars great cd
A friend turned me onto berut and I am so glad he did. The music is relaxing and erie. Its perfect for listening to while doing laundry or cooking, not too fast or slow paced.
Published on March 21, 2011 by Aly
4.0 out of 5 stars A must have for any Beirut fan
Most tracks have great replay value, and the entire album is well put together. Easy to do when in the great state of New Mexico, I'm sure. Read more
Published on February 6, 2010 by Nathaniel Body
1.0 out of 5 stars Downright Lousy Psudo-Balkan music from an ignorant indie rock kid
This for me is the second worst path an influence from Balkan traditional music can take. The very worst would be Turbofolk, the Serbian genre which blends the worst possible... Read more
Published on February 4, 2010 by Erik Mut
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