Review

Opera CD Review: An Album of Beethoven Arias? Soprano Chen Reiss’s Imaginative New Solo Disc Pulls it Off

June 8, 2020
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Immortal Beloved is a CD that will appeal to lovers of fine singing and to people curious about some hidden corners of Beethoven’s output.

Book Review: “Hiding in Plain Sight” — Detailing the Malignancy of Donald Trump

June 6, 2020
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According to Sarah Kendzior, “we have a transnational crime syndicate masquerading as a government.”

Film Review: “Shirley” — Domestic Witchcraft

June 5, 2020
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Shirley is hard to watch, hard to resist, and deeply, deliciously haunting.

Film Review: “Tommaso” — A Portrait of the Messy Inner Life of an Artist

June 4, 2020
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Director/writer Abel Ferrrara, who often features character actors such as Christopher Walken and Harvey Keitel in his movies, has found a kindred spirit in Willem Dafoe.

Jazz Album Review: Wolfgang Muthspiel’s Superb “Angular Blues”

June 4, 2020
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The precision and inventiveness of Angular Blues more than meets our high expectations for this terrific trio.

Television Review: “Ramy,” Season 2 — An Egyptian-American Muslim on a Hilarious Quest

June 2, 2020
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Much of the fun of Ramy comes from its deadpan embrace of heightened absurdity.

Jazz Album Reviews: Matthew Shipp and Whit Dickey — Unrepentant Proponents of Free Jazz

June 2, 2020
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Decades on, Matthew Shipp and Whit Dickey have grown into mature models of how to keep the faith when following an idiosyncratic muse.

Book Review: “The Worlds of J.R.R. Tolkien” — Ignoring the Poetry

June 1, 2020
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This is a beautifully produced book, replete with illustrations. Full-page photos of evocative landscapes are supplemented by both maps and smaller shots detailing architectural features.

Jazz EP Review: Esperanza Spalding and Fred Hersch: Live at the Village Vanguard — A Divine Duo

May 31, 2020
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Yes, purchasing this EP will help out a good cause, but the musical value of this fabulous duo’s performance is priceless.

Pop Album Review: “how i’m feeling now” by Charli XCX — What Life is Like, Sheltering in Place

May 29, 2020
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Charli has successfully dramatized her impatiently jagged state of mind, supplying an emotionally honest stream of consciousness that suggests what she (and no doubt many others of her generation) is feeling and thinking in quarantine.

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