Beirut are releasing a rarities compilation, “Artifacts“, that features 17 unreleased songs, plus b-sides and more. Here’s one of those rarities.
Sun-drenched troubadour Zach Condon of Beirut has just announced Artifacts, an upcoming double album comprised of material from across the band’s discography. Ahead of its release on January 28th via Condon’s own Pompeii Records, the band’s creative leader will be previewing the compilation with a new Beirut track called ‘Fisher Island Sound’.
The compilation album came together after Condon began rooting through old Beirut material in an effort to assemble a new EP. “Artifacts” seemed like the most logical way of documenting his development as an artist since he started making music at 14. The double album will include a few recognisable hits, including ‘Elephant Gun’, one of the most joyous songs ever written. But, all in all, the forthcoming record looks set to be an exploration of Condon’s unreleased work.
Retrospective of rarities and b-sides spanning the entirety of Beriut’s catalogue. 17 of the “Artifact’s” 26 songs have not been previously released.
Artifacts began humbly as a means of compiling a few early Beirut EPs for a proper physical release. However, as Zach Condon explains in album’s excellent liner notes, reconnecting with old recordings through fresh ears turned a simple re-issue project into something much more expansive.
“Artifacts” is a phylogenetic tree. A double-LP’s worth music that traces the evolution of Beirut from a 14-year old Condon’s first attempts at bringing the music he heard in his mind to life, to the fully formed Beirut we know today.
“When the decision came to re-release this collection, I found myself digging through hard drives looking for something extra to add to the compilation,” Condon writes in the Artifacts liner notes. “What started as a few extra unreleased tracks from my formative recording years quickly grew into an entire extra records-worth of music from my past, and a larger project of remixing and remastering everything I found for good measure.”
Discussing Beirut’s new song ‘Fisher Island Sound’ in a statement, Condon said: “This song was written while staying in band member Ben Lanz’s old family cottage on the coast of Connecticut, on the Fisher Island Sound. I played with the lines for years before trying to record versions of it in Brooklyn with the band. Perrin Cloutier had taught himself how to play a new button accordion beautifully, and the band was really sounding their best.”
Adding: “I, however, struggled in those years to put vocals on the songs and ended up scrapping a lot of the music from that era in this part of the collection due to fear, stress and self-doubt. I’ve come to rediscover some of these old songs in a different light since then, but they do remain a heavy reminder of unsteady times.”Artifacts is set for a physical release on March 4th, 2022,
From the new album “Artifacts” out January 28th, 2022 on Pompeii Records
The Fat Angel Sings 