Ben Lanz

A joyous return to the stage for Zach Condon and his European folk-focussed indie project Beirut. This is music as imagined landscape, a romantic sweep of Europe's past through the eyes of an American troubadour. From his Balkan-tinged debut in 2006, through a bohemian France dreamed up on 2007's The Flying Cup Club and on towards the Dutch and Mexican influences of his later material, Beirut is clearly the work of a singular vision while remaining hauntingly familiar, a half-remembered dream of a past life. Latest album Hadsel was inspired by a short time spent exiled in northern Norway, an emotional return to form released in 2023.

Mistaken for Strangers follows The National on its biggest tour to date. Newbie roadie Tom (lead singer Matt Berninger’s younger brother) is a heavy metal and horror movie enthusiast, and can't help but put his own spin on the experience. Inevitably, Tom’s moonlighting as an irreverent documentarian creates some drama for the band on the road. The film is a hilarious and touching look at two very different brothers, and an entertaining story of artistic aspiration.