Sound Pressure: Listening to Loudspeakers
Sometimes speakers talk to me. Usually when they do, they ask me to move them, or to move myself—the listening position—to suit them.
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LATEST ADDITIONS
Recording of February 2026: Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde
Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde
Marie-Nicole Lemieux, contralto; Andrew Staples, tenor. Les Siècles, François-Xavier Roth, cond.
Harmonia Mundi HMM 902740 (CD; reviewed as 24/96). 2026. Jiri Heger, prod., eng.
Performance *****
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Marie-Nicole Lemieux, contralto; Andrew Staples, tenor. Les Siècles, François-Xavier Roth, cond.
Harmonia Mundi HMM 902740 (CD; reviewed as 24/96). 2026. Jiri Heger, prod., eng.
Performance *****
January 2026 Classical Record Reviews
Erin Morley & Lawrence Brownlee: Golden Age; Elena Firsova & Dmitri Smirnov: Love And Loss; Ben-Haim: Symphony No.2, Israel Philharmonic/Lahav Shani; Mahler: Symphony No.7, National Symphony Orchestra/Gianandrea Noseda.
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January 2026 Jazz Record Reviews
Roy Brooks: The Free Slave; Amanda Monaco: Deathblow; Timo Vollbrecht: Bremen New York; Sun Ra And His Intergalactic Myth Science Solar Arkestra: Sleeping Beauty & On Jupiter.
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January 2026 Rock/Pop Record Reviews
Richard Ashcroft: Lovin' You; Chris Stamey: Anything Is Possible; Pigeons Playing Ping Pong: Feed the Fire; Joseph Kamaru: Heavy Combination 1966–2007.
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Rabbit Holes #20: More (and more, and more) songs from Talking Heads
For a lot of bands, the second album is intimidating. There are numerous examples of sophomore slumps, which sometimes lead to a band's quick end. Talking Heads didn't just avoid a sophomore slump; they scored their first top-40 hit and put their career on solid, sky-is-the-limit footing.
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NAD Masters Series M10 V3 streaming integrated amplifier
After I reviewed NAD's Masters Series M10 streaming integrated amplifier in January 2020, I bought the review sample to use as my daily driver . . . In 2022, NAD replaced it with a revised version, the M10 V2 . . . I never tried the V2, but when NAD introduced the M10 V3 ($2999) in late 2024, I felt a follow-up review was appropriate.
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NuPrime MCX-800AD Immersive multichannel integrated amplifier
NuPrime calls the MCX-800AD ($3995) an "Immersive Audio Processor," but that's not really what it is, so I don't know why they call it that. NuPrime lists it on its website under both "Amplifiers" and "Multi-Channel DACs." So what is it, a floor wax or a dessert topping?
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Shanachie Records' New Vinyl-Reissue Series
"The term 'sales' is an anachronism. Today, it's about streaming and ancillary income."—Randall Grass, general manager at Shanachie Entertainment.
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Revinylization #71: Rahsaan Roland Kirk Live on Two Coasts
There's widespread consensus that Shohei Ohtani's performance in Game 4 of the 2025 National League Championship Series was the greatest in baseball history: at the plate, 3 for 3 with three home runs; on the mound, six innings with 10 strikeouts and only 2 hits allowed. That defines double threat. Almost seven decades earlier, jazz's original triple threat made his first record—Triple Threat—for the King label.
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