I still have nightmares about singing countless renditions of “The Happy Wanderer” as a member of my high school glee club. Attending a Roomful of Teeth performance at the Big Ears festival in 2019 helped me overcome my longstanding aversion to choral music. The pleasure I take in Roomful of Teeth’s Rough Magic indicates it’s now among my favorite sounds. Portions of the four compositions on the new album are as freaky as any form of avant-garde music. William Brittelle’s “Psychedelics” and Peter S. Shin’s “Bits torn from words” are appropriately titled. Caroline Shaw’s “The Isle” is based on “The Tempest.” “None More Than You,” a room-clearer by Eve Beglarian, is my favorite piece. Rough Magic is an immensely gratifying revenge of the choir nerds.
