I’ve listened to Beirut’s The Rip Tide several times through and I still feel as if I don’t have a strong opinion about it. I’ve enjoyed every listen, but it’s just not sticking with me and I can’t decide if it’s my own fault or the album’s. It’s good. I don’t have anything negative to say. But then again: it’s good – and that’s about all I can think to say. The Rip Tide is a solid, mediocre album that didn’t live up to the fantasies I had constructed in my head after so many years of no new releases. Beirut evokes many happy memories and nostalgic feelings for me and the new album seems to have lost a little of the band’s old magic. With all of that said, it’s still an enjoyable album and you should definitely give it a listen. If anything, please prove me wrong and tell me it hits home with you. Because right now it’s just not quite sticking with me, and I really want it to.
“Santa Fe” is perhaps the most upbeat and poppy songs on the album, unlike some of the other eight songs on this short and sweet album that take a little time to unfold. Patience is rewarded though, because after several listens the other songs really come alive. Maybe it’s a reflection of the harsh winter weather surrounding the time of the recording, but it has a slower pace as a whole. “Goshen,” with lines about “never finding home,” is moody and dramatic but springs to life once the snare drum kicks in and gets the listener ready for the wailing trumpets. On “Payne’s Bay,” the sharp trumpets stick around and the album plugs on. I’m finally finding myself tapping my toes. “Headstrong” feels like the peak of the album and the songs become a little less memorable from there on out.
Beirut’s previous albums have seemed a little less focused and maybe that’s how I prefer them. The Rip Tide is only nine songs and a little more than a half-hour, and it is obvious that this is a tightly packed group of songs. Each number in the collection carries weight, and repeat listens slowly opens each of them up. “Port Of Call” showcases Zach Condon using his ukulele as a driving melody, and the title track sways gently just like its names suggests.
All of these elements come together and form a cohesive album, but I’m left craving more. Where some people would see a sign of maturity in this shorter, yet more cohesive album, I’m left craving more wild-and-free. Give it your own listen and see what you think.
Tracklisting:
1. A Candle’s Fire
2. Santa Fe
3. East Harlem
4. Goshen
5. Payne’s Bay
6. The Rip Tide
7. Vagabond
8. The Peacock
9. Port of Call
