Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Laurie Anderson’s ‘x²’ Transfixes Barcelona With Song-Driven, Multimedia Set

Her collaboration with Sexmob shifted her repertoire toward song craft, drawing praise for a serene, hopeful charge.

Overview

  • Anderson performed x² at L’Auditori for the Festival de Jazz Barcelona, her only Spain date after a San Sebastián cancellation.
  • She led the avant‑jazz septet Sexmob from the Knitting Factory scene in arrangements that favored song form across jazz, rock and slow‑reggae pulses.
  • The set reimagined Big Science, Language Is a Virus, Bodies in Motion and It’s Not the Bullet…, alongside deconstructed takes on Lou Reed and Bob Dylan.
  • Vocoder‑treated vocals, electric violin and AI‑generated visuals for a grandfather tale underscored a multimedia narrative with references to Cornel West and Pema Chödrön.
  • Critics praised a hypnotic, hopeful experience capped by a tai‑chi encore, with La Vanguardia awarding five stars.