There is a myth that great artists operate in seclusion. One need look no further than to the ten songs of Antony and the Johnsons’ new album, I am a Bird Now, to realize this is an utter fallacy. To be sure, with androgynous features, the singularly named Antony is an original. Have you ever heard a voice like this, imbued with the transcendental emotion of the blues, yet deployed with an unadorned simplicity reminiscent of medieval music practice, and graced with a top note of childlike wonder? Or songs that blur distinctions of gender and identity, yet which still summon up such powerful feelings: longing, love, lust, loss? No. Because Antoni is one-of-a-kind. But he is certainly not alone. MORE
Anohni and the Johnsons: “Hope There’s Someone”
