It is easy to believe in the permanence of sound. Now every recording can be streamed and repeated on demand without degradation; files replicate flawlessly; loops repeat without wear; digital archives expand infinitely. Music appears inexhaustible as technology promises security against erosion—like nothing goes away. William Basinski’s “The Disintegration Loops,” receiving a deluxe reissue in November, persists as a profound counterexample: a body of music where the smallest sonic fragments become monumental precisely through their disappearance.

To continue reading, subscribe now.

Unlimited access to our
weekly issues and archives.

Already have an account?

Login here

… is the author of the novel Redshift, Blueshift (Gival Press), which won the Gival Press Novel Prize. He studied English literature at Vanderbilt University and holds a J.D. from the University of Virginia...