Beirut is an American indie-rock and world music band which was originally the solo musical project of Zach Condon (born Zachary Francis Condon in Santa Fe, New Mexico) and later expanded into a band. The band's first performances were in New York, in May 2006, to support the release of their debut album, Gulag Orkestar. Condon recorded before Beirut was established: when he was fifteen and under the name of Realpeople, he made an electronic record, fashioned after his love for The Magnetic Fields.