Louder: Brian Eno’s Music for Anxious Times

November 6, 2020

By Caryn Ganz

Pop Music Editor

Early-ish in the pandemic, when it felt like listening to Brian Eno’s ambient works might help soothe nerves — but figuring out where to start in his vast catalog was a stress all its own — Jon Pareles guided us in a wonderfully curated playlist. Now we have the man himself in conversation with Lindsay Zoladz as he releases a collection of his music that has appeared in films. Let his eloquent thoughts on functional music, the impact of technology on society, and one of his most-used pieces onscreen, “An Ending (Ascent),” wash over you this weekend.

More musicians are stretching out and finding alternate venues for live performances, and Ben Sisario went behind the scenes as J Balvin inserted himself into the video game Fortnite for a Halloween show with a Day-Glo cast of characters. (And there’s some good news about concerts and virus safety, via a study in Germany.)

Plus, we learned a lot about Kylie Minogue’s Prince obsession via her My Ten interview with Tariro Mzezewa, and Keith Harris, the final music editor of the Minneapolis alt-weekly City Pages, wrote about the newspaper’s history as a haven for great music writing.

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Brian Eno’s Music for Anxious Times

As he releases a collection of work that has appeared in films, the English musician talked about making functional art, his most ubiquitous composition and why he dislikes wearing headphones on the street.

By Lindsay Zoladz

THE CRITICS

the playlist

Burna Boy’s Cry for Nigeria, and 9 More New Songs

Hear tracks by Jade Bird, Nothing, Fred Hersch and others.

By Jon Pareles, Giovanni Russonello and Lindsay Zoladz

album review

On Ariana Grande’s ‘Positions,’ Intimacy Is a Topic and an Aesthetic

The singer continues to make the mainstream pop album a looser, weirder and more conversational space on her sixth LP.

By Lindsay Zoladz

BEHIND THE SCENES

Jessica Lehrman for The New York Times

How J Balvin Made His Trippy, Eye-Popping Halloween Concert in Fortnite

The video game has become a music venue as the pandemic continues to keep live shows off the road. The Latin pop star put his own colorful spin on the experience.

By Ben Sisario

PROFILES & INTERVIEWS

my ten

Kylie Minogue Swoons for Prince (and Ennio Morricone)

The Australian dance-pop institution ran down her list of cultural must-haves as she prepared to release her 15th album, “Disco.”

By Tariro Mzezewa

‘Song Exploder’ and the Inexhaustible Hustle of Hrishikesh Hirway

The creator of several podcasts and a new television series is a popular investigator of the creative process. But his most personal case remains unsolved.

By Reggie Ugwu

A Rap Star Agonizes About His Role in Poland’s Culture Wars

Taco Hemingway became one of his country’s biggest rappers with tracks about partying. This summer, his focus changed and so did the kind of attention he got.

By Alex Marshall

Lous and the Yakuza Makes Music From Her Life’s Darkness

At 24, the songwriter, singer and rapper has fled one war and lived through the aftermath of another. Now, bridging continents, she tells an autobiographical story with her debut album.

By Geneva Abdul

feature

How Gillian Welch and David Rawlings Held Onto Optimism

The uncertainties of 2020 led the folk duo to discover a new emotional urgency in songs about the slow, challenging, beautiful heat of living.

By Hanif Abdurraqib

unopened: ‘scratch’

Bob Dylan’s First Musical Had a Devil of a Time

The task: write songs for Archibald MacLeish’s adaptation of a classic New England morality tale. What audiences saw (briefly): A play without music.

By Adam Langer

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City Pages, the Alt-Weekly Where Music Writing Reigned Supreme

The Minneapolis newspaper, which closed last week after four decades, was a home and a launchpad for a generation of pop journalists.

By Keith Harris

NEWS

Coronavirus Study in Germany Offers Hope for Concertgoers

Findings from a test event with 1,200 attendees suggest that indoor concerts have a “low” impact on infection rates, providing they are well ventilated and follow hygiene protocols.

By Isabella Kwai

the charts

Luke Combs Returns to No. 1 With a Streaming Record for Country Music

“What You See Ain’t Always What You Get,” a reissued version of his 2019 album, debuted at the top of the Billboard album chart with 70 percent of its sales coming from 102 million streams.

By Ben Sisario

OBITUARIES

Bill Graham

Baron Wolman, Whose Photos Helped Start Rolling Stone, Dies at 83

He was the magazine’s first photographer, capturing Frank Zappa, Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead and many more in the days before image control.

By Neil Genzlinger

King Von, Up-and-Coming Chicago Rapper, Shot and Killed in Atlanta

The rapper, 26, was one of three people shot and killed during an altercation involving police officers near downtown early Friday.

By Joe Coscarelli

those we’ve lost

Johnny Meadows, Pro Wrestler With a Tuneful Side, Dies at 59

John Condrone, as he was called in real life, left the ring for a different stage, becoming a songwriter and performer. He died of complications of Covid-19.

By Alex Vadukul