A review by wesleymiles
How Music Works by David Byrne

slow-paced

4.5

while some parts were a bit of a slog, it’s 100% worth it to those looking for a perspective why we like the arts. his writing is easy to digest even if the topic is dense. the parts about “modern” 2014 technology are very outdated, but i don’t know how else to tackle something that moves so quickly in a book. i especially appreciated the parts on
  • how culture attaches morality to certain music
  • the archeological and post-enlightenment history of music (if you get stuck jump to the last chapter for this)
  • how context / technology influences how we record and experience music and vice versa
  • yes i gobbled up the name dropping and early days of the  heads (for such a big book, we could’ve used more pictures)