Free improvisations recorded live at Heeltop Home Studio, in Kingston Springs, Tennessee on December 27, 2017
released June 6, 2018
All music by Rodger Coleman & Sam Byrd
Heeltop Music (BMI)
Recorded, mixed, and mastered by Rodger Coleman
Photography by Jeff McLennan (
flickr.com/people/mclennanphotos)
Design & layout by James Buttery (
jamesbuttery.com)
Special thanks to Rob "EoLoVoX" Clark for the mathematics
___
Continuing to take the psychic temperature of a world gone mad, long-time musical compatriots Rodger Coleman and Sam Byrd return with their latest CD, "The Mathematics of War," a turbulent sonic landscape reflective of the 21st Century’s frightening surreality. With Coleman wielding an increasingly vast array of electronic instruments, gadgets, and loops pitted against Byrd’s battery of drums, percussion, and samples, the album makes a viscerally brutal statement of force and conflict that is anything but easy listening.
While all three freely improvised tracks are darkly ruminative, a wide variety of sounds and textures arise and fall away amidst the din, with hints of rock’n’roll’s radical redemption or the deceptive calm of New Age synth drones providing a fleeting sense of false comfort, like distant mirages in a vast, parched desert. And yet, for Coleman and Byrd, their music is ultimately an expression of freedom and positive energy in the face of forces that would seek to constrain them. “That’s what makes it related to jazz,” declares Coleman, “even if it doesn’t sound like what most people think of as ‘jazz.’”
They didn’t set out to make an overtly ‘political’ record; according to Coleman, “the title was derived from the cover photograph by Jeff McLennan which he called, ‘The Mathematics of War in The Schoolyard,’ an extremely powerful image that dictated the rest of the visual concept.” Even so, the music manages to live up to its packaging. “The album can definitely be seen as a mental reaction to a renewed sense of angst and unrest around the world,” says Byrd. “When they push that button, your ass gotta go!”
“I’m particularly pleased with how the CD jacket came out,” exclaims Coleman. “It is such a pleasure to work with these fine folks all over the globe, like Jeff in Canada and James Buttery in New Zealand. The end result goes far beyond anything I could have imagined on my own and really makes it something special.” Rob “EoLoVoX” Clark, a college math professor in Wisconsin, was brought on board to help with the mathematical symbols and provided the cryptic equation that appears throughout the artwork. As it turns out, physicist Sean Gourley did some research on wars and found that just about all of them can be summarized in a single formula: P(x) = Cx-a. “How’s that for The Mathematics of War?” quipped Clark.
The sheer length and unrelenting intensity of the tracks once again precluded a vinyl release — in fact, the final one, ('Zero Sum Game') had to be edited to fit the album onto a single CD (though the full-length version will be available for download on BandCamp). “I love vinyl,” admits Coleman, “but it just doesn’t make sense with this music. Besides, I think CDs can sound very, very good.” Engineered by Coleman in his home studio, you can hear for yourself on "The Mathematics of War."
© + (p) 2018 NuVoid Jazz Records
PO Box 417, Kingston Springs, TN 37082-0417