Musicians are back on the road, but every show is a gamble

Plus, an interview about Terri Lyne Carrington's 'New Standards'

View this email online Sept. 24, 2022 by Marissa Lorusso This week, we’re sharing a report about the continued crisis facing touring musicians; plus, more El Tiny performances. Illustration by Jackie Lay/Photo by Sharon Lopez Last weekend, in an interview with 60 Minutes, President Biden said the COVID-19 pandemic is a thing of the past. "The pandemic is over," he said, though he admitted that “we still have a problem with COVID.” That problem includes thousands of new cases being detected every day and hundreds of COVID-related deaths each day. “If you notice, no one's wearing masks,” the President continued. “Everybody seems to be in pretty good shape. And so I think it's changing.” That uneasy balance — changes in social norms around masking and other precautions, at a moment when the threat of infection persists — has been weighing on many musicians who have returned to live performances over the last year. This week, we shared a report from KQED’s Nastia Voynovskaya, who spoke to artists, venues and industry figures about the particular way the COVID crisis continues to exact a toll on touring musicians. “Mask mandates and similar risk-reduction policies have evaporated. And audiences, perhaps starved for social connection and a sense of normalcy, have largely reverted to pre-pandemic behavior,” Voynovskaya writes. For these artists, the “maze-like logistics of COVID safety are theirs to navigate, with little support from governments or their industry.” I’ve gone to a handful of shows recently, and Voynovskaya’s analysis matches my experience: I still feel pretty troubled about being in a large, mostly unmasked crowd, even though the joy of gathering with strangers to watch a spellbinding performance has felt especially moving after such a long stretch without it. Voynovskaya’s reporting points out how much artists — especially anyone operating below the very highest echelons of success — rely on income from touring, and how devastating even a single positive COVID test result can be for a band. Plus, she speaks with independent music venues to underscore how much they have also suffered because of the pandemic. It’s a crucial reminder of the ongoing challenges facing the industry at large and all the individuals within it — and how, despite it all, “musicians are finding ways to stay motivated and push forward.” Newsletter continues after sponsor message New Music This week’s All Songs Considered New Mix is filled with thrilling collaborations: Okkervil River’s Will Sheff is joined by Cassandra Jenkins; Hand Habits co-wrote a song with Amelia Meath; plus, a new band made up four of Washington, D.C.’s best-known musicians, putting out a record on D.C.’s most respected label. Jake Blount is a singer, arranger, multi-instrumentalist and scholar of Black American music. His latest album, The New Faith, is an ominous Afrofuturist tale that reimagines field recordings of spirituals to tell a story about a time after the climate crisis has destroyed the earth. The Philadelphia songwriter Alex G has long taken a playfully distorted approach to songwriting, like he's filtering his music through a funhouse mirror. While fascinating, the approach also led critics to dub songwriter Alex Giannascoli opaque. But on God Save the Animals, his impressive new album, the musician wields his wide-ranging musical quirks with newly focused direction.  Makaya McCraven — drummer, composer and self-described "beat scientist" — forged his style out of whirring parts and deft designs, working with unstructured group improv and loop-savvy digital postproduction. In These Times, McCraven's new album and by far the most “finished” of his discography, proves that it's possible to use tools from across the history of jazz performance and hip-hop production, with a sensitive hand that masks an obsessive attention to detail. Featuring The latest edition of Jazz Night in America’s Youngbloods series focuses on pianist and composer Sean Mason. He tells the podcast about his musical journey from North Carolina to New York, and how the South never really left his music — plus, hear a Sean Mason Trio performance at Dizzy's Club. After finding an abysmally low number of songs by women artists within jazz's unofficial book of standards, Terri Lyne Carrington set out to fix the problem. The Grammy-winning jazz drummer created the book New Standards: 101 Lead Sheets by Women Composers. She spoke to All Things Considered about the process and about what jazz culture could look like without patriarchy. Charley Crockett's story sounds larger than life — years spent riding trains; a claim of relation to folk hero Davy Crockett; narrowly avoided scrapes with the law. But the country singer — who just released his 11th album in seven years — told writer Natalie Weiner, "Everything I ever said I am is true and then some.” Tiny Desk NPR This week, our Latinx Heritage Month celebration continued at the Tiny Desk with a (home) concert from Carin León, a game changer in the world of Mexican Regional music, and an intimate, simmering El Tiny performance from Girl Ultra. One More Thing Brad Pitt and Nick Cave Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to hear live radio from WMFE (edit station). Need a new playlist? Follow NPR Music on Spotify and Apple Music What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: nprmusic@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? 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