Louder: Bruce Springsteen Is Living in the Moment

October 23, 2020

By Caryn Ganz

Pop Music Editor

If you’re a Bruce Springsteen fan who’s sad there’s only limited live music for the next … however as long, this won’t help in the short-term, but will give you hope for the future: “I’m at a point in my playing life and artistic life where I’ve never felt as vital,” Springsteen told Lindsay Zoladz, as he prepared to release his latest album with the E Street Band. “I’m 71, and I’m thinking, ‘Well I know one thing. I’m in the mood right now to burn the house down for as long as I can.’”

(For me, at the moment, a live tribute-band performance alongside “Purple Rain” at a drive-in theater in Queens will have to do — and it was hard to stop saying “I’m so glad we did this” the whole time.)

Sam Smith ran down 10 cultural must-haves, which reveal a journey to finding a place in queer spaces. Christopher R. Weingarten profiled Clipping, a trio whose new horror-rap album reflects (and suits) 2020 quite well. Elysa Gardner introduced us to six young women who represent the future of cabaret.

And a very sad but special read from Nate Chinen, who brings news from Keith Jarrett, the remarkable pianist who may never perform in public again.

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Bruce Springsteen Is Living in the Moment

“Letter to You,” his new album with the E Street Band, is built on lessons and skills accumulated in the past. But the Boss is focused on where he stands now — and where he’s going next.

By Lindsay Zoladz

Daniela Yohannes/ECM Records

Keith Jarrett Confronts a Future Without the Piano

The pathbreaking musician reveals the health issues that make it unlikely he will ever again perform in public.

By Nate Chinen

PLAYLIST & POPCAST

the playlist

Ariana Grande Is in Love, and 11 More New Songs

Hear tracks by Julien Baker, Arlo Parks, Helena Deland and others.

By Jon Pareles, Giovanni Russonello and Lindsay Zoladz

The Many Mariah Careys

A conversation about her memoir, her range of contributions to pop music and her secret alt-rock album.

INTERVIEWS

Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images

My Ten

Sam Smith Is Finding a Place Inside Queer Spaces

Preparing to release their third album, “Love Goes,” the singer and songwriter talked about the films, club nights and images on their list of cultural must-haves.

By Dani Blum

Kayla Reefer for The New York Times

2020 Is Chaotic. Clipping’s New Horror-Rap Album Captures It.

The trio featuring Daveed Diggs, William Hutson and Jonathan Snipes returns with another blast of political music that crosses genres and boundaries.

By Christopher R. Weingarten

Simbarashe Cha for The New York Times

Meet the Next Generation of Cabaret Showstoppers

Teens competing for the New York Cabaret Convention are proving that young people are invested in the Great American Songbook.

By Elysa Gardner

September Dawn Bottoms/The New York Times

The New Vanguard

How the Vibraphonist Joel Ross Keeps Finding Fresh Rhythms

On a new album with his quintet, Good Vibes, the musician, 25, asks a big question: What should swing rhythm sound like in the 21st century?

By Giovanni Russonello

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For Italy’s Masked Rap Diva, an Era of Face Coverings Poses a Dilemma

Myss Keta, the mysterious Queen of the Milan Night and an authority on life behind the surgical veil, was on the brink of celebrity. Now, everyone looks like her.

By Jason Horowitz

Why Are TikTok Teens Listening to an Album About Dementia?

Creepypasta meets esoterica in an ongoing meme.

By Ezra Marcus

anatomy of a scene

Watch Kelly Rowland Play an ’80s Pop Star in ‘Bad Hair’

The writer-director Justin Simien explains how he created a music video-within-a-film that recalls Janet Jackson-style clips.

By Mekado Murphy

Sayaka Unno

He Was a Rising Jazz Pianist. Then His N.Y.C. Dreams Were Shattered.

The police said an attack on the pianist was not a hate crime, but social media disagreed. Now he’s considering a return to Japan.

By John Leland

NEWS

the charts

Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Rumours’ Returns to the Top 10, Thanks to TikTok

The album’s last run in the upper echelons of the Billboard chart was in February 1978.

By Ben Sisario

Running Live Dance Drills at the Armory

Bill T. Jones and David Byrne are preparing to make use of the Armory’s vast space now. One hitch: Theaters still can’t open in New York State.

By Brian Seibert

After Delay, Ticket Holders Are Getting Refunds for Two Concerts

People who had planned to see Tool and Judas Priest at Nassau Coliseum are getting payments, after a holdup involving a billionaire Russian investor.

By Ben Sisario

Rapper Arrested After Bragging About Unemployment Fraud in Video

Fontrell Antonio Baines, who performs as Nuke Bizzle, illegally obtained $1.2 million in jobless benefits intended for workers idled by the coronavirus pandemic, the authorities said.

By Marie Fazio

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Spencer Davis, Whose Band Helped Power the Sound of the ’60s, Dies at 81

Hits like “Gimme Some Lovin’” and “I’m a Man” made the Spencer Davis Group, based in Britain, famous worldwide and launched the career of its lead singer, Steve Winwood.

By Jim Farber

Peter Moore

Jon Gibson, Minimalist Saxophonist and Composer, Dies at 80

Best known for his long association with Philip Glass, Mr. Gibson also worked with Steve Reich, Terry Riley and La Monte Young as well as performing his own music.

By Steve Smith

FROM T MAGAZINE

Photograph by Liz Johnson Artur. Styled by Julia Sarr-Jamois

FKA Twigs Has Reached New Heights

Known for her haunting blend of R&B and art-pop, the singer is already a singular presence, but remains unwavering in her pursuit of technical virtuosity.

By Emily J. Lordi