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Love your music writing, here as elsewhere — who else is gonna namecheck The Pop Group and “Marquee Moon” in a Steve Reich review? Despite the terror the four words “Wilco and the National” struck in my heart — Nels’ gotta eat, and all, and yet… — sounds like it was an incredible night of music. Kudos.
Jesus Christ… I’ve accepted that living in NYC means there will be something you wished you saw that you ended up missing every single night. But this? I never saw a single ad for it! Dammit! Nice writeup, though—your point about Reich’s avoidance of climactic catharsis is spot-on.
Excellent piece, Glenn! A really smart blend of writing for people at all levels of familiarity with Reich’s music. If I didn’t know Steve Reich before reading that, I would certainly be curious to check him out; on the other hand, I think you make some very cogent points about Reich’s style (pointed out about by TFB). Also found myself nodding with your assessment of Philip Glass’s “relentlessness.” I think “Different Trains” is one of the most powerful pieces of music in recent times, so I’m definitely eager to hear “WTC 9/11.”