“Vagabond” - Beirut 

Rarely am I ever satiated by the visions of music video directors. Between misguided concepts and elaborate story arcs that sacrifice the music’s direction for some trite tale, I’ve simply been burned too often and generally prefer when videos go a little off the deep end. That being said, I absolutely approve of the rampant alcoholism, World War II era dress, and awkward dancing and cock chasing that fills Sunset Television’s visual treatment of “Vagabond.” Even if wartime inebriety isn’t your thing, I think we can all agree on the quality of the song behind it.

- Kyle Minton 

“Santa Fe” - Beirut

The Guardian is currently running this newest video from Beirut’s The Rip Tide, and the poor guy it’s centered around looks like he’s having a pretty bad week. His girlfriend dies, his dog gets run over by a car, and the medical bills are through the roof. And yet, this video has its funny side as well. Lucky for him, he gets to frolic on the beach with them one more day before the reality of it all sets in. The Rip Tide is out now on Condon’s own Pompeii Records [link].

- Kevin Tappin

“East Harlem” - Beirut

The digital release of The Rip Tide (Pompeii Records) is now only a week away, so waste no time preparing. Just take a listen to “East Harlem” if you haven’t yet (it has been floating around for ages) [link]. The arrangement of this track is just superb, all the pieces woven together to make a lively, plucky piece, results in one of my favorite songs of the past few months. The rest of the album promises to be just as great. The physical isn’t available until August 30th, but that’s why they have preorders. [link]

- Tyler Hanan