Review

Classical CD Reviews: Michael Tilson Thomas’ “From the Diary of Anne Frank,” Nielsen Symphonies nos. 1 & 2, and Arabella Steinbacher’s “Four Seasons”

July 27, 2020
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This San Francisco Symphony release proves to be a fitting send-off for music director Michael Tilson Thomas; there’s much to admire in the Seattle Symphony’s playing of Carl Nielsen’s first two symphonies; fiery energy from both violinist Arabella Steinbacher and the excellent Münchener Kammerorchester make their new disk a gem.

Pop Album Review: Oliver Tree’s “Ugly Is Beautiful” — Embracing Our Inner Kookiness

July 27, 2020
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Though it’s inconsistent, Oliver Tree ‘s debut album offers an ample display of songwriting acumen along with his determined eccentricities.

Book Review: “Lake of Urine: A Love Story” — Breaking Established Reality

July 27, 2020
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It’s hard to critique a novel that flies under such a resplendent banner, a wholesale rejection of the dead and decaying world of trends and war and meaninglessness.

Book Review: Ornette Coleman –The Life of a Jazz Visionary

July 27, 2020
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“Ornette was looking for those notes, the ones that feel no pain.”

Theater Review: “Heroes of the Fourth Turning” – What Lurks in a Zoom-screen Void

July 26, 2020
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The play’s swift running give-and-take is chillingly beguiling, its myriad allusions arousing your curiosity as you consider the characters’ positions and conclusions yourself.

Classical CD Reviews: David Lang’s “love fail,” Christopher Rouse’s Orchestral Music, and Hub New Music’s “Soul House”

July 26, 2020
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For fans of David Lang and/or one of the country’s best choirs, this is a can’t-miss release; Christopher Rouse’s Fifth is about as fresh and engaging a Symphony as the composer wrote; Hub New Music plays the daylights out of Robert Honstein’s Soul House.

Film Review: “The Rental” — Low Rent B and B Horror

July 25, 2020
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The Rental chugs along predictable genre rails, its characters settling into the expected “types” as screws are gradually turned on them by whoever’s surveilling from a distance.

Live Concert Review — Idiot Prayer: Nick Cave Alone at Alexandra Palace

July 25, 2020
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The solo format at Alexandra Palace recalled his recent “Conversations with Nick Cave” tours, a similar chance for the singer to deconstruct his songs at the piano, except that he never addressed an imagined audience beyond his lyrics.

Film Review: “Helmut Newton: The Bad and the Beautiful” — Naughty or Nice?

July 24, 2020
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In this documentary, the photographer and his art are not so much defended as explained through the voices of the world’s top models and movie icons with whom he worked.

Rap Album Review: “Miles” — Blu & Exile’s World of Anguish and Beauty

July 24, 2020
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For an hour and a half, Blu examines himself on Miles, trying to understand who he is and where he comes from.

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