The concert was only a few minutes old and I was already scribbling in my notebook phrases like "as if pulling out the guts of the piano itself." And I meant that admiringly.
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Music & Film Reviews: Frank Zappa’s ‘Cheaper Than Cheep,’ plus Janis Ian, Christian Parker, Eli ‘Paperboy’ Reed, and Big Love Car Wash
The 23-song program mines some of Zappa’s most noteworthy material. He reaches all the way back to 'Freak Out,' the Mothers’ sterling 1966 debut...
Read More »Music & Film Reviews: ‘Pink Floyd at Pompeii MCMLXXII’ (2025 Editions), plus Julee Cruise and Emma Wilson
The visuals, which are as unusual as the music, contribute to the sense that you’ve entered some sort of LSD dreamworld.
Read More »Music Review: The Crossing – ‘At Which Point’
The Crossing, the elite new-music chamber choir led by Donald Nally, routinely pushes the boundaries of what kinds of music a group of human voices can create.
Read More »Music Review: Susan Botti – ‘River Spirits’
'River Spirits' by Susan Botti lives up to its dual billings as a 'theatrical motet' and a 'futuristic abstract fable.'
Read More »Book & Music Reviews: ‘Decade of Dissent: How 1960s Bob Dylan Changed the World,’ plus the Bongos & Robert Forster
Can there really be anything more to say about Bob Dylan and his music? As it turns out, the answer is a qualified yes. Just don’t hold your breath awaiting major revelations.
Read More »Music Review: ‘Then and Now: Chamber Music of Richard Festinger’
A lot of contemporary music comes my way, and rarely do I hear a collection as appealing as this one, full of interesting ideas and curiously beautiful sounds.
Read More »Music & Video Reviews: Badfinger’s Lost LP, plus Live Albums from Al Stewart, Translator, and Oregon
This new edition of Badfinger's 'Head First' employs the recently discovered master tapes, which have been newly mixed and mastered by Bob Jackson, the band’s only surviving member.
Read More »Music Review: Adam Mirza – ‘Partial Knowledge’
The language comes not from notes and rhythms but the physical parameters of how an instrument is played.
Read More »Album Reviews: Eric Andersen’s ‘Dance of Love and Death,’ plus Cat Stevens and Wanda Jackson
Andersen has been serving up poignant, powerful music for six decades now. 'Dance of Love and Death' leaves no doubt that he can still deliver.
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