Jim Coleman

Jim Coleman has been pushing at the musical barricades for well over two decades now, and does not seem interested in pulling back anytime soon. He first came to my attention as part of the industrial band Cop Shoot Cop. CSC had a unique lineup. No other band had a two-bass, no guitar approach, and it set them apart immediately. CSC never enjoyed much mainstream success, but they were revered by their fans. Another element of their popularity was Jim Coleman’s interest in experimental film, which led to some of the most original music videos ever.
Cop Shoot Cop ceased to exist in 1996, under the all too familiar “no commercial potential” pressures of their record label (Interscope). It was such a bizarre period in the music industry. After the explosion of grunge, record labels went on a feeding frenzy, and signed just about everyone who had ever been mentioned in a ‘zine. I guess the thinking went that any of these bands held the potential to be the “new Nirvana.“ That worked well. The suits ignored the fact that the music of CSC was (proudly) unlike anything that would considered Top 40 material, and then tried to change them. CSC were no Spice Girls, and never would be.
Since the mid-'90s, Coleman has worked in both film and music. He has collaborated in film with such noted directors as Todd Phillips and Richard Kern. Musically he has issued recordings with Italian composer Teho Teardo, and the incredibly prolific J.G. Thirlwell.
Coleman’s latest, and first release on his own Wax and Wane label is titled Trees. It is quite a departure from the late '80s, early '90s music of Cop Shoot Cop. I like the description he uses of it, as being “firmly rooted in sound collages with a strong cinematic sensibility.”
From the opening “Sideways,” the cinematic feel is quite evident. I would never be so crass as to describe anything on Trees as “new age,” because it is not. But there are moments of ambient bliss sprinkled throughout the album. I think a more effective description might be that of the electro-acoustic genre, which has been gaining in popularity a great deal lately.
The song titles themselves offer up a nice mix of visuals, including “Under Current,” “Summer Heat,” “Another Place,” and “Rain.” Coleman has enlisted the help of some excellent musicians to augment his music. These include Kirsten McCord (cello), former CSC drummer Phil Puleo (on a number of instruments), Dawn McCarthy (vocals), and Ellen Fullman, who plays an unnamed, self-built “long stringed instrument.”
Although I consider Trees an instrumental album, the vocals of Dawn McCarthy add a beautiful, otherworldly element to “Summer Heat,“ and “Tracks.“ Her additions to the tunes are wordless, and quite mysterious, and deepen the overall effect nicely.
As for Ellen Fullman’s contributions, they are a little harder to place. The notes mention that she appears on two of the songs, and I believe they are “Under Current,” and “Live Out.” But there are so many different effects going on throughout the album, and since I do not know exactly what it is I am listening for, this is just a guess.
Whoever gets credit for what is a little beside the point though, for the musical mix is quite extraordinary. One thing is certain, if I had been played Trees without knowing who was behind it, I never would have thought of Jim Coleman. His embrace of such different tones than those of what he was first associated with is remarkable.
Trees is a very haunting, and thought-provoking ten-song set. Just when you think you have a “handle” on it, he changes the mood dramatically. I first noticed this on track five, “Another Place,” which is much darker than what had come before. As a classically trained pianist, I have no doubt that it is he who plays the fascinating piano melody on this song, and it fits marvelously.
As mentioned, the “genre” of electronic music we call electro-acoustic has become more and more popular recently. For those of us who want a little “more” than the glacially-paced ambient form, but still would like to hear interesting “mellow” stuff, Trees is an excellent place to start. There is a great deal going on here, but one of the elements of this music that I so enjoy is that it can be “actively” listened to, or just put on in the background, depending on one‘s mood.
One of my favorite albums of 2012 so far has been Four Shibusa by Monty Adkins. I hope Jim Coleman does not mind me comparing Trees favorably with that one. Although the two are different in many ways, both offer some of the finest music of the electro-acoustic form I have had the pleasure to hear this year. Reportedly, Coleman is working on an ambient follow-up to Trees, and I am looking forward to hearing that one as well.

- Blinded By SOund

Dopo Phylr, Here con Mauro Teho Teardo e Baby Zizanie con JG “Foetus” Thirlwell, l’ex Cop Shoot Cop mostra un ennesimo volto, per tanti versi inatteso, siglando, oltretutto, il primo vero lavoro a suo nome. Non è, evidentemente, la solarità a farla da padrone, tutt’altro; ma delle ruvidezze industrial e delle oscurità electro dub dei progetti precedenti, Trees offre come un riverbero, certo non pacificato, si direbbe più rassegnato.
Ambient elettroacustica, in definitiva; formulata come cosmogonia sonora, attraverso dieci tracce, pensate come fossero una sola, che osservano l’avvicendarsi delle stagioni (Summer Heat), la mutazione degli stadi naturali (Under Current, Rain), l’irretimento panico (Another Place, Dawn). Sono fascinazioni sospese, miranti ai padri nobili (Tangerine Dream, Brian Eno ma anche Main e Stars Of Lid), vestite di un’eco neoclassica, grazie alle note di violoncello di Kristen McCord che accompagnano buon parte dei brani, che lo spettro industriale, in più momenti, riporta ai Current 93 di The Inmost Light. Screziature ritmiche (il vecchio Cop Phil Puleo), appena accennate, appena udibili, in Sideways; Steve Reich nel vibrafono di Tracks; le voci da muezzin (Dawn McCarthy) fantasma di Dawn, puntellata da note sparse di piano; il sax della conclusiva Rain. Per il resto il campo è dell’elettronica (synth, samples, programmazioni, ecc.) dei suoni trovati e di altri inintelligibili.
Ogni innovazione, ogni originalità, è bandita da Trees, che è la celebrazione, ora etnico misticheggiante, ora oscura e tenebrosa, della natura. O forse, meglio, l’addio ad una natura sempre più ferita e distante. Una sensibilità che, certo, non ci si aspetterebbe da chi un tempo cantava cose del tipo: “I asked a pig if he wanted to dance/he says is that a 45 in your pants”. - Rockerilla

Dopo Phylr, Here con Mauro Teho Teardo e Baby Zizanie con JG “Foetus” Thirlwell, l’ex Cop Shoot Cop mostra un ennesimo volto, per tanti versi inatteso, siglando, oltretutto, il primo vero lavoro a suo nome. Non è, evidentemente, la solarità a farla da padrone, tutt’altro; ma delle ruvidezze industrial e delle oscurità electro dub dei progetti precedenti, Trees offre come un riverbero, certo non pacificato, si direbbe più rassegnato.
Ambient elettroacustica, in definitiva; formulata come cosmogonia sonora, attraverso dieci tracce, pensate come fossero una sola, che osservano l’avvicendarsi delle stagioni (Summer Heat), la mutazione degli stadi naturali (Under Current, Rain), l’irretimento panico (Another Place, Dawn). Sono fascinazioni sospese, miranti ai padri nobili (Tangerine Dream, Brian Eno ma anche Main e Stars Of Lid), vestite di un’eco neoclassica, grazie alle note di violoncello di Kristen McCord che accompagnano buon parte dei brani, che lo spettro industriale, in più momenti, riporta ai Current 93 di The Inmost Light. Screziature ritmiche (il vecchio Cop Phil Puleo), appena accennate, appena udibili, in Sideways; Steve Reich nel vibrafono di Tracks; le voci da muezzin (Dawn McCarthy) fantasma di Dawn, puntellata da note sparse di piano; il sax della conclusiva Rain. Per il resto il campo è dell’elettronica (synth, samples, programmazioni, ecc.) dei suoni trovati e di altri inintelligibili.
Ogni innovazione, ogni originalità, è bandita da Trees, che è la celebrazione, ora etnico misticheggiante, ora oscura e tenebrosa, della natura. O forse, meglio, l’addio ad una natura sempre più ferita e distante. Una sensibilità che, certo, non ci si aspetterebbe da chi un tempo cantava cose del tipo: “I asked a pig if he wanted to dance/he says is that a 45 in your pants”. - Indie-Eye

ack when I lived near NYU, I listened to John Schaefer’s New Sounds program with a faith approaching the religious. I could rely on audio content that was likely to enhance whatever I was reading. Or I’d stop reading, cooking, or writing to stare into space; having a revelation, or prior to scribbling something creative. Trees, Jim Coleman’s first solo excursion into the audio genres variously known as electronic/experimental/progressive, is the sort of recording for which I awaited the details, once Schaefer starting running through his playlist, that would help me seek out the entirety.

By themselves, terms such as “electronica” and/or “ambient” don’t really cover what’s happening on this album. Coleman calls it “neo-classical ambience.” Aided and abetted by Kirsten McCord (cello) and Dawn McCarthy (occasional vocals), Coleman creates and manipulates sounds that include his own French horn playing. By the time this journey has arrived at its second track, “Under Current,” I’m in a contemplative-while-stimulated space that I also associate with work by Gavin Bryars and Terry Riley. On the whole, however, Coleman consistently explores spacier territory –Trees could also be featured on Hearts of Space, the show that used to follow New Sounds. Tracks flow together organically; more of an evocative whole than clearly delineated parts. By the time the distantly poignant, almost jazzy “Rain” ends the album, listeners who fall easily into sleep or meditation are likely to be in one of those states. - Foxy DIgitalis

The man behind the mood of one of New York City's greatest bands speaks.



BY RON HART



Given the resurgence of the aggro mentality of old school indie rock in young groups like The Men, Slug Guts and Cult of Youth, it should come as no surprise that a rise of interest in the oeuvre of Cop Shoot Cop in recent years. But while the controlled cacophony of CSC's role on the New York noise circuit of the late ‘80s/early ‘90s alongside the likes of Sonic Youth, Swans and Unsane is being revisited by today's Pitchfork-pandering pipsqueaks discovering such classic (and woefully out-of-print) titles as 1990's Consumer Revolt and 1993's Ask Questions Later, former Cop keyboardist Jim Coleman continues to blaze a path of greatness as a craftsman of electro-acoustic music on his latest studio LP, Trees.



An accomplished film composer who is classically trained in piano and French horn, Coleman has scored for such established directors as Todd Phillips (Frat House) and Hal Hartley (Henry Fool) and provided bed music for HBO, PBS, A&E and TLC among other networks. He's also delved deep into the realm of modern electronic music under the moniker Phylr as well as collaborative projects with Italian composer Teho Teardo (as Here) and J.G. Thirlwell (as Baby Zizanie). With Trees, Coleman brings together all of these aforementioned elements of his creative cache with the help of a full-bodied ensemble of longtime friends and sparring partners, including former CSC drummer Phil Puleo and Dawn McCarthy of Faun Fables.



Mr. Coleman took the time out to speak with us about the creation of Trees, his time in the television and film industries as well as a most gratuitous look back at his days in CSC. (Below, check out some tracks from Coleman, Phylr and Cop Shoot Cop.)





Jim Coleman: Rain by phylr Phylr: I wouldn't feel the loneliness by phylr Cop Shoot Cop: the sky is blue by phylr











BLURT: How did you first get turned on to electro-acoustic music?

COLEMAN: In an indirect way, I started performing electro-acoustic music around the time my first solo album as Phylr was released. I didn't really think of it as electro-acoustic music at the time, but I was performing with samplers, electronics and sequencers along with live percussion. So in a way, I guess this could be considered electro-acoustic. I guess, though, that in this way, even Cop Shoot Cop could be considered electro-acoustic.

But now I think of electro-acoustic music as a particular, yet broad genre of music. Perhaps my first taste of this was some of the early Fennesz releases.



Who are some of the artists you have followed or currently follow in that realm and do these acts harbor any influence on your own work in the field?

I have somewhat intentionally not been following or listening to music in the electro-acoustic genre. When I started to see Trees as a distinct body of work, I wanted to approach it as much as possible on a purely emotional level, not from the intellect. I didn't want to get reactive in my music making by being overly informed about similar music that is out there.

That being said, I don't live in a padded room. In my earlier years, I submerged myself in Brian Eno's Music for Films and Music for Airports. I was listening to Steve Reich and some Phillip Glass early on. Others that have mad an impact on me: Fennesz, David Lang, Zoe Keating, DJ Olive, Biosphere, Autechre.



What is it about trees that inspired you to name the album as such?

I've always been fascinated by trees. There is something mythical about trees, how their limbs reach to the sky and this is mirrored by their roots, digging down deep in the earth, unseen by us. It's like they traverse all these different planes of existence. They are like nature's shamans. Don't get me wrong, I don't go around hugging them, but they fascinate me.

This album felt like a similar journey, one that is deep and down and dark at times, and also light and airy at times. And it felt organic, both in the creative process and in the overall sound.



How did you go about choosing the artists that you employed for Trees?

The choice of artists was also organic. I continually work with Phil Puleo. We've been working together pretty much since Cop Shoot Cop blew apart. Although I hadn't worked directly with Kirsten McCord prior to this album, we vaguely travel in the same circles and it was an easy fit. The recordings with Dawn McCarthy were actually outtakes from the recordings I did for the first Phylr album, Contra la Puerta (she appears on that record as well). Ellen Fullman I had recorded previously playing her long stringed instrument in a semi permanent installation in Austin Texas. I was there working on some music for a dance piece and had the opportunity to meet here and do some recordings. And Bryan Christie, who runs a high-end graphics studio but also plays sax. Brian and I were friends and collaborators. I had done a few music bits for his studio and clients. I brought him over to the studio just to see what would happen. I generally am not a big fan of sax, but this somehow worked so well.



As a student of film, what movie did you feel you learned the most from and why?

Before I was in film school, I was in art school and was shown a film by Meredith Monk called Key. This had a huge effect on me, opening me up to what was possible in creating a personal language in film, music and the two living together. Somehow that film was a totally immersive experience for me at that time. I would love to see it again to see if that still holds true. I guess also this film also validated that I could make my own rules. This was something I took with me when I later entered film school. I was the only student focused on making experimental films at the time. The program was all about teaching the pre-existing rules. I was about creating my own rules, my own language, and my own world. This for me is the magic of creative work. Ultimately, I settled in to both. I did learn the basics of narrative and documentary filmmaking, but I continued to focus on experimental filmmaking. Maybe I'm a romantic, but I've always felt that passion trumps knowledge. But I also believe that they need not be exclusive, we can have both.

I also recall going to a double feature that really resonated for a long time afterward. This could also partially be attributed to the chemical balance or imbalance in my brain and body at the time, but nonetheless. The double screening was Aguirre, The Wrath of God followed by Apocalypse Now. Somehow this double header just threw me in to a beautifully dark place for a long time. It also showed me just how powerful films could be.



As a soundtrack composer, whose template have you followed in regard to the way you've approached making music for film?

I wouldn't say that I've really followed any specific template in my scoring, or really in any of my creative work. I'm not saying that from any haughtiness. I'm not saying that what I do is always that unique. I'm saying that because I'm a bit disorganized in my approach to scoring and music making. Even in a literal sense, I have read again and again how it is beneficial to create templates for whatever DAW you are using (Music software like Logic, Pro Tools etc). But I never have yet to do this. Of course, when working on a film, there is attention paid to various themes and sub themes. But I tend to approach things on much more of an emotional level than an intellectual level. This is rather interesting to me, as the rest of my life is truly rules by the intellect, to the point where at times I can have difficulties accessing my emotions. But somehow in the creative realm, it's just right there.

Growing up and in my adult life, I have always enjoyed listening to a variety of composer's work: Carl Stalling, Bernard Herrmann, Henry Mancini, Lalo Schifrin. Some of this stuff gets way over the top. But when it's subdued (for instance, the track "Shifting Gears" from Bullitt), it's just so right.



One of my favorite stories about Neil Young is how he recorded the soundtrack to Dead Man while he was watching an early cut of the Jim Jarmusch Western. Have you ever composed a score in that fashion?

I did several seasons of the A&E series The First 48. The deadlines and work process ended up being so crazed that it demanded a good amount of blind scoring. I would usually see the first cut, just past the assembly stage really. Sometimes I didn't even see that, the editors were basically working from a huge amount of tracks that I had created for them. At the end of the day, I made a library of tracks for them. But having done if for a few seasons, I knew more or less what would work and what wouldn't.



How different is it to compose music for television versus film?

There is something special about film, where it gets really deep. The music becomes a part of the overall language of the specific film, helping define characters and situations. I'm sure that it can be like this for television, but most of the work I have done for television has been in the realm of True Crime. And a lot of television is somewhat formulaic. I think films have the opportunity to stretch out more, to defy convention. I've found myself to be in a deep, immersive world at times when composing for film. My experience with television has been more fraught with deadlines, people running around just trying to get it done.



What are your thoughts on how some of your contemporaries - -Nick Cave, Mick Harvey, Clint Mansell, Trent Reznor, Mark Mothersbaugh of DEVO - -have crossed over into the world of film scoring and whose work do you admire the most amongst the brood?

I think that it's a natural move for a certain type of musician and composer. First off, all these guys all understand the language of film. Secondly, they all must be comfortable around the technology, as film scoring has become somewhat of a technical venture. And thirdly, they all must be somewhat in the mix socially. It's sad but true, social politics underlie so much. At times I'm surprised at what I've been able to do through the years, as I am not much of a hustler.

I admire all these artists. There needs to be some women and some non-Caucasians on that list too though! Of all four you mentioned, I've always felt the closest connection to Trent. His music has always spoken to me very strongly. I still am listening to "The Social Network" score with a degree of regularity.



There have been many new bands as of late citing Cop Shoot Cop as an influence on their own method of performance -- bands like The Men and Slug Guts among others. Are you cognizant to how much of an impact CSC is making on this new generation of heavy-minded indie rockers and do you welcome this resurgence in interest in your old band?

I guess I've been living in my padded cell again. I actually have not been aware of this, but I welcome it with open arms. I've been listening to The Men since their album Leave Home came out and I guess I can see that connection, though their music is quite different as well (which is a good thing). I'd be curious to learn more about bands that we have influenced. I know our old stuff isn't that easy to find, so it's reassuring to me that it still is finding ears and that it still resonates!



In light of this renewed interest, has there been any talk about revamping the CSC catalog?

From time to time, there has been talk about it. As I just mentioned, CSC records aren't easy to find. They aren't on iTunes, not in brick and mortar stores. There are still broken lines of communication within the band, but I do have faith that everyone would like to see the recordings become more available. Perhaps it is time to put aside all the petty shit that drove us apart and agree to do this.


Of all the great tours CSC was involved in during the 1990s, which was most memorable for you and why?

For several years, all the tours kind of merged together. At times, we were on the road for 9 months out of the year. But I can provide you with some selected memories (feel free to pick and choose if I go on too long):



A.) Banned in the suburbs of Washington DC: Woke up in a motel somewhere outside of Washington DC I believe. Upon leaving the hotel, Natz started doing something with the fire extinguishers. I can't recall if he was hosing down people or the van or possibly the mess we left in the room. In any case we had to leave in a hurry. We went to breakfast at some kind of pancake house which felt like it was full of church going god fearing Christians (must've been a Sunday). There was a problem with our bill. We didn't get everything that we had ordered, though the waiter insisted that we did. After tedious calculations, we left money for what food we had received, left and went next door to the gas station to gas up our vans. As we were getting ready to pull out of the gas station, several cop cars pull up and block our way. The restaurant had called the DC PO on us. We gave them our side of the story and promised never to return to their town again.



B.) Banned in Hoboken: We played Maxwell's once I think, and were never allowed to play there again. During our set, the power went off. Out front, someone's van window was broken. A microphone ended up missing. Maxwells determined it was all our fault.



C. The crazy girl from Wrightsville Beach: We were doing a more or less clockwise tour of the states and Canada. When we showed up at the club in Wrightsville beach, two young girls were waiting outside the club. I don't know how young. One of them came back for the show, the other one didn't. The one that didn't get to the show re-surfaced the next morning as we all reconvened for breakfast. She kind of hooked on to Tod, and ended up in the van as we were going out of town. Except we had to make a pit stop at a Victorian looking mental hospital so she could get her meds. We found out later she failed to get these meds. And we found out later that she had been walking down the street with her sister, saw Todd in the window of the diner and told her sister she just had to say hi to a friend and that she would catch up to her wherever they were going.

So she got in the van and joined us on tour for a few dates, selling merchandise and hanging out. Luckily, not one of us tested her virtue. I don't know why, but it didn't happen. We were about to do the long haul through Texas and end up on the West Coast, so we basically told her that Atlanta was the end of the line. She said, "OK, no problem, she had friends there." So she stayed in Atlanta.

In L.A., we started getting messages from out booking agent saying that some girl's family kept calling him. Their daughter was missing and they had information that she had left with us. I ended up being the designated caller. I got the number and called her family. I talked to her sister, who advised me not to talk to her parents. At that time, she still was not home. I assured her sister that we had all acted like gentlemen, and told her to call us back if she didn't reappear in a few days. I never heard back.



D. Somewhere in France (perhaps Marseille): We were playing in a small club that was so packed, so hot and so humid that my samplers and electronics kept freaking out. It was just impossible to play. So I removed every article of clothing and wandered around the audience while the rest of the band played. Figured I had to at least add to the entertainment value.



E. Gent, Belgium: Late night after a show there, we ended up finding this construction site not that far from our hotel. We got in easily and started up a percussion jam, using all the stuff from the site. After a while, I looked over to see a good dozen concerned residents out on the street. We took the cue and started to leave. And sure enough, the police start showing up. We all run for it, in several different directions. Most of the band made it back to the hotel. Tod and I went on a long haul through a maze of back streets and alleys, through the red light district. There were several police cars chasing us, we'd look down an alley and see one, so we'd hi tail it the other direction. Eventually they caught the two of us and took us in. They proceeded to serve us tea and we got in to an involved discussion about the history and politics of Belgium while some of the other cops went and checked out the construction site for damage. Once they checked it out and found that nothing was destroyed, they took us back to the hotel.



F. Detained in L.A.: We were slated to play UCLA the night that curfew was lifted from the Rodney King riots. Given our name, they decided to not have us play, though they paid us anyway. At the time, we were being courted by Interscope Records, and they put us up at some ritzy hotel. We went downtown to have some dinner. At the time, our tour van was an old shorty school bus that was painted camouflage, complete with camouflage curtains. We bought it off of some guy who used to go around to army bases and sell bumper sticker sand stuff like that. We parked our van, and walked the block or so to the restaurant. On the way, we passed some kind of military police who were talking in their radios about us, but we paid it no mind, thinking they should get a life.

After we ate, I was a bit tired, so I went out to the van on my own. I walked out and started walking back to the van when all of a sudden this guy yelled at me to stop. I looked up and saw a helicopter hovering with its searchlight hitting the ground just in front of me. A cop came over and asked me where I was going, so I told him that I was just going over there to my van. He immediately swung me around, put handcuffs on me and started to march me away. I told him that if he was taking me anywhere, I needed to let my friends inside the restaurant know. He asked me what restaurant and I pointed it out. I heard later that several cops went in to the restaurant with guns drawn and hauled the rest of our party out, with no opportunity to settle the bill.

They took us all to one area a short distance away, where they detained us against a wall. Somehow they got it in their heads that we had a bomb in the van. They had blocked off a several block radius, brought in a helicopter, Military police, and LA police. I tried to give them the key as they were going to break in to the van. They didn't take it, instead opted to wrench the back door off. And what did they find? Many Cop Shoot Cop T shirts.



Anyway, I could go on for a long time with stories from touring. It can be a very unique alternate reality. I feel very fortunate that nothing really seriously bad ever happened during that time. There were so many close calls.



Please tell me about CSC's first gig.

The first gig I played with CSC was at The Court Tavern in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Tod had recently gotten discharged from the hospital after getting third degree burns on his hand. He was inebriated at a party and had put way too much hairspray on his hair as a joke. When he lit a cigarette, his whole head went up in flames. He extinguished his burning head with his hands and arms. He couldn't use his fingers at the time, so he was playing his bass with this metal cylinder.

I forget the reason why, but we got pulled over on the way to the show but were able to drive away. The gig was a big sloppy affair, just a big somewhat violent mess. A TV was burnt on the stage. Most of our early shows were kind of like this. We could never finish sets, as some altercation was always happening either in the audience, in the band, or between the audience and the band. For a while I was bummed out, as we could never really just play a full set. But later, when things calmed down a bit and both the band and the audience was a bit more mature, I kind of missed those early days, when you never really knew what was going to happen. Definitely kept you in the present, though there was usually quite a bit of unnecessary drama attached to it.

We got pulled over on the way home from that gig as well. We were lucky to walk away this time. But the [policeman] who had pulled us over was also a bass player. He just couldn't believe that Tod was playing without the use of his fingers.



Has there been any talk of a CSC reunion at all?

There has been talk of a CSC reunion, but not within the band. I keep hearing that posed as a question. I dream of it, literally. But it's not always a good dream. The recurring part of the dream is that we are about to hit the stage, and we realize that we haven't rehearsed even once. I'm sure this dream says more about me than anything else. In reality, I don't see it happening.



Do you have any plans on taking the Trees ensemble out on the road?

There are a number of ways that I could perform Trees. From solo laptop to multi instrumentation. I've considered this, but haven't really focused my energies in this direction so far. Through the years, I've perhaps gotten more comfortable in the studio than on stage. That's not a reason NOT to play. Perhaps it's more of a reason to play, to get outside of my safety zone...



What other projects do you have in the works currently?

Currently in the works: I'm continually working on original material and remixes as Phylr: beat oriented stuff for the most part, but still quite cinematic. I've been doing a bunch of music for a film called Tabbo by Beth B, which is a documentary on contemporary NYC based extreme performance art. And I'm working on a follow up to Trees. This work was originally based on recordings of individuals near death experiences and psychic trauma, but is opening up a bit more.





Coleman on the web:



www.jimcolemanmusic.com

http://jimcolemanmusic.wordpress.com/
http://soundcloud.com/phylr. - Blurt