Gulag Orkestar
2006 studio album by Beirut
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Gulag Orkestar is the debut album of Beirut. It was recorded in 2005 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Gulag was a Soviet government agency administering criminal justice, while orkestar is the Serbo-Croatian word for "orchestra".
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| Gulag Orkestar | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 9, 2006 | |||
| Genre | Balkan folk | |||
| Length | 37:25 | |||
| Label | Ba Da Bing | |||
| Beirut chronology | ||||
| ||||
It is written in the booklet that the front and back photos were found in a library in Leipzig, torn out of a book. The original photographer was unknown to the creators of the album while it was recorded, but has since been discovered to be Sergey Chilikov.[1]
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 80/100[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[4] |
| The Guardian | [5] |
| NME | 8/10[6] |
| The Observer | [7] |
| Pitchfork | 7.7/10[8] |
| Q | [9] |
| Rolling Stone | [10] |
| Uncut | [11] |
| The Village Voice | B+[12] |
The album has received great critical acclaim and was later re-released to include the Lon Gisland EP.
As of 2009, sales in the United States have exceeded 79,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[13]
Track listing
Many song titles are named after toponyms in Europe, such as cities, states and neighborhoods. Prenzlauerberg is a locality in Berlin. Brandenburg and Rhineland are geographical areas in Germany. Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia.
All tracks are written by Zach Condon.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Gulag Orkestar" | 4:38 |
| 2. | "Prenzlauerberg" | 3:46 |
| 3. | "Brandenburg" | 3:38 |
| 4. | "Postcards from Italy" | 4:17 |
| 5. | "Mount Wroclai (Idle Days)" | 3:15 |
| 6. | "Rhineland (Heartland)" | 3:58 |
| 7. | "Scenic World" | 2:08 |
| 8. | "Bratislava" | 3:17 |
| 9. | "The Bunker" | 3:13 |
| 10. | "The Canals of Our City" | 2:21 |
| 11. | "After the Curtain" | 2:54 |
| Total length: | 37:25 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Elephant Gun" | 5:48 |
| 2. | "My Family's Role in the World Revolution" | 2:07 |
| 3. | "Scenic World" | 2:53 |
| 4. | "The Long Island Sound" | 1:18 |
| 5. | "Carousels" | 4:23 |
| Total length: | 16:29 | |
- The EP's version of "Scenic World" differs from the first in that it has a slower, stronger sound and is entirely acoustic, with a violin and accordion replacing the original MIDI keyboard.
Personnel
- Beirut
- Zach Condon - vocals, trumpet, flugelhorn, ukulele, percussion, mandolin, accordion, organ, piano, recording
- Heather Trost - violin
- Jeremy Barnes - percussion, accordion
- Perrin Cloutier - cello
- Hari Ziznewski - clarinet
- Additional personnel
- Alan Douches - mastering
- Josh Clark - recording, mixing
- Ben Goldberg - photography (all but cover and back)
