"Laurie Anderson has a way of holding our lives up to a mirror, reintroducing us to ourselves, in all our ridiculousness and splendor," writes NPR's Tom Huizenga in his introduction to Anderson's new NPR Tiny Desk Concert; "her incantations ... seem more sage-like than ever." She stopped by the NPR offices in Washington, DC, to perform a Tiny Desk Concert for the NPR and NPR Music staff. She was joined by violist Martha Mooke and multi-instrumentalist Doug Wieselman, a member of the band Sexmob, to perform songs from throughout her career, starting with "Let X=X," from her debut album, Big Science, and the title track to her just-released live album with Sexmob, through music from her latest studio album, Amelia. You can watch it here:

Let X=X is a triple-LP / double-CD set of twenty-three songs recorded live during a 2023 tour by Laurie Anderson and the jazz band Sexmob—Steven Bernstein on brass, Kenny Wollesen on drums and percussion, Douglas Wieselman on winds and guitar, Briggan Krauss on saxophone and guitar, and Tony Scherr on bass. The album includes many favorite songs from throughout Anderson’s career, performed in new arrangements—plus one by Lou Reed and Metallica, “Junior Dad.” You can get it and hear it here.

Laurie Anderson and Sexmob are back on tour in Europe now, performing in Croatia, Italy, and Portugal this week. They are back in the United States to perform in Central Park for SummerStage on June 26, then return to Europe in July. For details, visit nonesuch.com/on-tour.