For me, Beirut's new album is a small step back from the Flying Club Cup and the March of the Zapotec EP that preceded it. I was sure all this waiting would result in something bigger and better, but the ambition needed for that doesn't surface on the Rip Tide. It just seems like business as usual. Maybe this would have been acceptable as a release between Gulag and Flying, but the arrangements and foreign flavors of Beirut have held much more water on previous releases, and enhanced the Beirut experience.
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