and i don't mean lebanon

Here's what I know about Beirut:
1. it's a 19 year-old kid from Albuqurque who now lives in Brooklyn and plays like 100 instruments.
2. his album, Gulag Orkestar, dropped May 9th after much hype in the indie music circuit.
3. it's fucking rad.

As a music buff, I try to keep afloat in the bevy of new artists that gain quick pitchfork cred, but rarely do I find a band that I fall instantly in love with. At eleven, I found that in the whiny vocals of Stephen Malkmus and have never since found a voice as enthralling. There are staples: Cat Power, Yo La Tengo, Pavement, et al. And there are newbies: Joanna Newsom, The Rosebuds, Animal Collective, yada yada. This year, I'm at more of a loss. Then came Beirut. It recalls the klezmer sounds of a Europe more Eastern than we can imagine, while an inimitably mature crooner attempts the ultimate heartbreak. Buy it.