Amanda Palmer + Rhiannon Giddens: It’s A Fire

With recording artist Amanda Palmer on lockdown in New Zealand and MacArthur “Genius” Grant-recipient Rhiannon Giddens quarantined in Ireland, the duo determined to collaborate remotely on “It’s A Fire,” an entrancing Portishead cover with a message that resonates through current circumstances the world over. Palmer tapped regular collaborator Jherek Bischoff to arrange the track from LA (where he hired local string players to record in …

Wired’s Guide to Surviving a Volcanic Eruption

Using the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and its impact upon Pompeii as an example, Wired writer Cody Cassidy (author of Who Ate The First Oyster?) delves into the factual ways people survived the perils of magma, raining ash and explosive gas. With the help of Pier Paolo Petrone (forensic anthropologist at the University of Naples) and James Moore (volcanologist and scientist emeritus at the US Geological Survey), …

Katia + Marielle Labèque: Paul is dying (by Philip Glass)

Legendary French sibling pianists Katia and Marielle Labèque breathe life into the stunning Philip Glass composition “Paul is dying (Part 1).” It’s the first synchronous taste of the duo’s highly anticipated album with Glass, Les enfants terribles (out 23 October). The release comes complete with a thoughtful video directed Ronan Day-Lewis, which extrapolates and embraces moments both human and element, and stars Lena Christakis and Rocco Rinaldi-Rose.