From Axess, a special issue on music. In the Congolese capital Kinshasa, just surviving is hard enough, but one group of people spends hours traveling across town to sit in a sweltering compound and practice Handel — they are members of the Orchestre Symphonique Kimbanguiste, Central Africa's only symphony orchestra. Those ubiquitous wires connecting listeners to you-name-the-sounds from invisible MP3 players — whether of Bach, Miles Davis or, more likely today, Lady Gaga — only hint at music's effect on the soul throughout the ages. Heather Havrilesky reviews Lady Gaga: Behind the Fame by Emily Herbert, Poker Face: The Rise and Rise of Lady Gaga by Maureen Callahan, and Lady Gaga: Critical Mass Fashion by Lizzy Goodman. A look at why it's time to stop paying attention to Lady Gaga. What happens when musicians smash the metronome of developmental time and the prison-house of language? The puritans among us would like to declare that the great God Pan is dead but he is not and his music lives on. What is it about music that gets true believers so hot and bothered? From Vice, a special issue on anti-music. The music industry's new business model: Thanks to web streaming and MP3 players, album sales are in freefall — but bands shouldn't panic. Two of Us: Joshua Wolf Shenk goes inside the Lennon/McCartney connection. Ain't that a shame: Four biographies of rock'n'roll greats try to place music legend in the world of documentable fact. A review of The Music Instinct: How Music Works and Why We Can’t Do Without It by Philip Ball. Not fade away: Should music end abruptly or fade out?
