Memphis Metaphysics - Self titled

Memphis Metaphysics is a bold free jazz project uniting Swiss-Filipina pianist Margaux Oswald, Norwegian guitarist Hein Westgaard, legendary drummer Ra Kalam Bob Moses, percussionist Kevin Cheli, and Memphis saxophone master Art Edmaiston. Recorded live in Ra Kalam’s Memphis living room during Oswald and Westgaard’s 2023 journey through the American South, the album merges avant-garde spiritual jazz and European free improvisation with the raw, soulful spirit of Memphis. Ra Kalam’s drumming anchors the music with deep emotional resonance, guiding the ensemble’s uncompromising interplay.
The album’s five tracks draw inspiration from ancient Egyptian concepts of the soul—each piece named after a spiritual element such as the Ka, Sah, and Shuyet. These themes are mirrored in the visual artwork, which references early 20th-century archaeological discoveries in the Egyptian city of Memphis—curious stone tablets inscribed with ears, believed to receive and preserve human prayers. Just as those artifacts were vessels of voice and spirit, Memphis Metaphysicsbecomes a ritual of sound: a channeling of histories, energies, and improvisational fire into a cosmically grounded listening experience.