(2 out of 5 stars) I m disappointed to report that the first major Steve Reich work to appear in quite some time is a total drag. I hope his music doesn t continue down this dead-end path. The rhythmic and harmonic freshness and appeal heard in such brilliant and varied pieces as Different Trains, Music for 18 Musicians, Octet, and The Desert Music is distilled here into short episodes of watered-down Reich-isms. The spoken samples that were so seamlessly interwoven into Different Trains just sort of sit there in The Cave. And the socio-spiritual elements are totally overbearing, dragging the music down further. Steve Reich has always been one of my favorite composers.I hope he finds a way to develop his unique style more successfully in future projects. It s somewhat disturbing that the most interesting Steve Reich release in the past 10 years was all remixes by other artists. I think he should re-focus on the music and avoid musical-theatre concepts like The Cave .