The Flying Club Cup - Beirut

Worst CD I have ever purchased!

After reading numerous POSITIVE Reviews I thought I would give this CD a shot, as I am also a fan of early 1900's French and Parisian Music... and this CD was extolled to be such....and these were also very romantic times! Well, as we all have broad tastes in music so do I and when I say my tastes are broad, I'm being conservative as about the only thing I don't like is Opera and Rap! Anything else in between usually works! However, not this CD! I've TRIED listening to every track and was, today, on my 3rd-attempt to try and find something about it that I could enjoy! I got up to selection #5 and hit the eject button! To me it was nothing but noise, more noise and then some more!! It's going on eBay tomorrow for 1-cent plus shipping! Look for it!

interesting, different

I stumbled upon this on recommendations and found it alright and I listen to it fairly often.

Loved it!

So I was on YouTube one day and this band was featured as one of the "playing" videos on the homepage. I checked them out and fell in love! I had never shopped with Amazon before now - but I am going to do it again in the future. I was very pleased with the shipping time and the c.d. is great!

Homesick, fully grown children

This is their second LP release, and by far their best release to date.

Critics are quick to say Beirut's sound is Euro-stylized by influences like Jacques Brel and François Hardy. They're eager to compare the band's frontman, Zach Condron, to Scott Walker. It won't be long before they liken Beirut to the Tindersticks had Stuart Staples turned queer.

But "The Flying Club Cup" proved Zach Condon has developed a musical style beyond compare.

Whereas "Gulag Orkestar" showed that the self-ordained small time American band could meld Macedonian folk sounds with romantic classical European music stylings and bourgeoise bohemian sophistication, "The Flying Club Cup" uses this melded sound as the departure point toward a far more striking occurrence: style defined without subculture.

Timeless, ageless, genderless, cultureless, songs like "Cliquot" and "The Penalty" make "The Flying Club Cup" an album that could have come out of almost any place in the world at any point in history.

But it's not just universal in those senses. Perhaps because of frontman Zach Condon's sophisticated, mature air and voice, it was refreshing and unexpected to hear him sing such honest lyrics about love. It was, well, sweet. Better yet, it is why I think "The Flying Club Cup" is nothing short of genius.

In sum, "The Flying Club Cup": Beirut's balkan-gypsy-folk-french-euro-pop music style renowned in their first LP release, made even better with more mature lyrics for the young at heart.

Frech Flair

The Flying Club Cup contains the most compelling melodies and arrangements of songs inspired by French folk and popular music. Coban's addictive voice and the backing vocals are backed by an appealing instrumental mix that including horns, fiddles, piano, violin, viola, mandolin, brass, accordion, strings and layers of percussion. The sound is cohesive and authentic, for a full impressive sound on these beautiful tunes. My favorites include In The Mausoleum, Cliquot, Nantes and the title track. The mood is introspective, even sad at times, but engaging throughout on this unique and remarkable album. Repeated plays are advised, as the album slowly releases its layers of sonic beauty.