''Functional Arrhythmias'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist

Steve Coleman Steve Coleman (born September 20, 1956) is an American saxophonist, composer, bandleader and music theorist. In 2014, he was named a MacArthur Fellow. Early life Steve Coleman was born and grew up in South Side, Chicago. He started playing al ...

and his band Five Elements, which was recorded in 2012 and released on

Pi Recordings Pi Recordings is a jazz record label founded by Seth Rosner in 2001. He was soon joined as partner by Yulun Wang. Pi specializes in avant-garde jazz. Its first two albums were by Henry Threadgill. Pi's roster includes Amir ElSaffar, Anthony Braxt ...

. This version of the ensemble is notable for the return of

Anthony Tidd Anthony Tidd is a British-born bass player, composer and music producer, who has been based in the United States since 1996. A well-known name on the international jazz scene and veteran touring bass player, he has graced stages alongside many stapl ...

on electric bass and

Sean Rickman Sean Rickman is an American musician from Washington, D.C. He has worked with Shawn Lane, Garaj Mahal, Dapp Theory, Steve Coleman, Maxwell, Meshell Ndegeocello, Blacksheep, Phil Upchurch, David Fiucynski & Screaming Headless Torsos, Kai Ec ...

on drums, both of whom first played with the band more than 15 years earlier. The rest of the band consists of trumpeter Jonathan Finlayson and guitarist

Miles Okazaki Miles Okazaki (born 1974) is an American jazz guitarist and composer. Okazaki is a lecturer of jazz guitar at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Early life Okazaki grew up in Port Townsend, Washington. When he was six, he began lessons on ...

.''Functional Arrhythmias''
on Pi Recordings

Background

The title of the album refers to the irrational rhythms found in healthy human heartbeat patterns and how many of its compositions utilize the heartbeat pulse. Coleman has long been fascinated with time-related themes, and ''Functional Arrhythmias'' is his attempt at creating a musical analogy of the rhythmic interaction between the circulatory, nervous, respiratory, and other biological systems of the human body. He credits drummer

Milford Graves Milford Graves (August 20, 1941 – February 12, 2021) was an American jazz drummer, percussionist, Professor Emeritus of Music, researcher/inventor, visual artist/sculptor, gardener/herbalist, and martial artist. Graves was noteworthy for his e ...

for providing the inspiration for his explorations.

Reception

The ''

Down Beat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

'' review by Shaun Brady states, "Most of the compositions on ''Functional Arrhytmias'' were transcribed from Coleman's improvisations, so the generally brief pieces seem to accrue layers of spontaneity, the melodies as daring and unpredictable as the improvisations."Brady, Shaun. ''Functional Arrhythmias'' review. ''Down Beat'' July 13: page 66. Print. The ''

JazzTimes ''JazzTimes'' is an American magazine devoted to jazz. Published 10 times a year, it was founded in Washington, D.C. in 1970 by Ira Sabin as the newsletter ''Radio Free Jazz'' to complement his record store. Coverage After a decade of growth ...

'' review by Lloyd Sachs says, "This may be the most openly engaging, generous effort yet by the influential founder of the M-Base movement."Shachs, Lloyd
''Functional Arrhythmias'' review
at ''

'' In a review for

BBC Music BBC Music is responsible for the music played across the BBC. The current director of music is Bob Shennan, who is also the controller of BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 6 Music, and the BBC Asian Network. Officially it is a part of the BBC's Radio o ...

, Martin Longley states, "This is the most exciting and substantial Coleman release of the last few years, rigorously challenging, pumped with insinuating melodies, sleek with propulsive energies and pulsating with a uniquely globular funkiness."Longley, Martin
''Functional Arrhythmias'' review
at

Track listing

All Compositions by Steve Coleman # "Sinews" – 6:53 # "Medulla-Vagus" – 6:33 # "Chemical Intuition" – 3:58 # "Cerebrum Crossover" – 6:46 # "Limbic Cry" – 5:37 # "Cardiovascular" – 2:34 # "Respiratory Flow" – 3:50 # "Irregular Heartbeats" – 3:58 # "Cerebellum Lean" – 5:28 # "Lymph Swag (Dance of the Leukocytes)" – 3:53 # "Adrenal, Got Ghost" – 3:08 # "Assim-Elim" – 3:32 # "Hormone Trig" – 4:30 # "Snap-Sis" – 3:08

Personnel

–

alto saxophone The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in E, smaller than the B tenor ...

* Jonathan Finlayson –

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

– bass *

–

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

–

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

on 2,6,8,10,11

References

{{Authority control 2013 albums Steve Coleman albums Pi Recordings albums