Tommy Carroll Music

Join me for the first outdoor concert of the season

May 13, 2025

Hi friends! As beautiful weather begins to sweep its way into town, I want to invite you to a performance on May 31st. Synthesizer player Kyle Werle and I...

Magic and interplanetary experiments in May

May 2, 2025

Hi friends! Hope you all are doing well. My performances the last few months have primarily focused on the development of my jazz compositions. Now, I'm...

Live at Lemon Chicago this Friday

April 9, 2025

Good afternoon friends! Thank you all so much for the kind words so far about Sound Sculpture. If you haven't had a chance to check it out yet, the album is...

Sound Sculpture: live at the art institute of Chicago

April 4, 2025

Just like metal, clay, or wood, sound can be shaped to occupy space and accent an environment. At the end of 2024, I had the opportunity to present two...

New release and new show incoming...

April 1, 2025

Good morning friends! Two quick but exciting announcements this week. First off, this Friday I will be releasing Sound Sculpture: Live at the Art Institute...

A week of fun and inventive shows

March 4, 2025

Hi friends! No essay this week,. I just wanted to share a few events that are sure to warm the spirit and spark imagination. Hope to catch you out and about....

Artist headspace vs. musician headspace + Whistler March 5th

February 18, 2025

Good afternoon friends! First off, I wanted to give you all an early heads up that my trio featuring Marcos Rios (guitar) and Lyn Rye (bass) will be...

The farther you go, the closer you get: thoughts on the creative process

February 11, 2025

Hello friends! I can't believe it was eight years ago today when I released my first album Not Amazing. Up to that point, I had spent years playing in bands,...

A meditation on making it through + music on the way

February 4, 2025

Good afternoon friends! First off, thanks to everyone who made it out to Elastic last week for my Trio's performance. It was great to see some people I...

My thoughts on art in our moment + friendly reminder for Elastic Thursday

January 28, 2025

Hello friends! At the end of last week I went on a deep dive into my creative archive. Revisiting old recordings both released and unreleased brought back...

Compositions at the improvised music series? What!

January 23, 2025

Hi friends! Over the past few years, improvisation has been my primary focus as a band leader. In particular, I've been interested in long-form suite-style...

Where is Calculated Discomfort going in 2025?

January 4, 2025

Happy new year friends! I've been seeing a lot of people say this year was full of ups and downs, and I can't disagree. It's a tumoltuous time to be a human,...

Join me at the Art Institute of Chicago next week

December 19, 2024

Every December since 2018, I've done an end-of-year show called the Winter Clearance Event. It's usually at a more informal venue or gallery, but this year...

Birth of a band + festivities

December 9, 2024

Hi friends! Hope you all had a solid fall all things considered. I'm writing to let you know about a couple things I'm doing to wrap up the year that I think...

Putting in the time, to have a good time

September 30, 2024

Happy fall friends! I was just telling someone the other day how I believe music is a constant process of iteration. You get a group together, play a few...

Two big shows this week

September 17, 2024

Hello friends! I'm excited to check in with you all and let you know about two very exciting things happening in the Calculated Discomfort world this week....

Come out Tuesday for a free show and a fun night

July 3, 2024

Happy summer friends! This time in Chicago is the best time for live music, nice weather and friends anywhere in the world in my opinion. As I mentioned in a...

It's time for music, among people

June 11, 2024

Hi friends! First off, thank you all so much for the support for The Harmony of Rhythm so far. It's nice to know this concept that has been bouncing around...

Step into a new sound world (album out now)

May 21, 2024

At long last, The Harmony of Rhythm is here. This album is not just a glimpse into my musical world, but a representation of how I hear the world as a whole....

Setting the scene with sound / a sneak peek

May 18, 2024

Hi friends! It's a beautiful day in Chicago. I'm checking in to give you all a little sneak peek of Tuesday's album release, and to explain why this...

The menu for May

May 7, 2024

Hello friends! Hope you are all well and enjoying the turn of the season. I'm actually headed to San Francisco for a few days for a breath of fresh air...

Blood money out of art, blood money out of everything

April 30, 2024

Hi friends, I was planning to release the next single from The Harmony of Rhythm this week, but I ended up spending the time I had set aside to prepare the...

Join me on the sonic path of totality

April 8, 2024

Good morning friends! Nothing enhances and expands the emotion of a moment the way music does. To me, music captures and amplifies the vibrations of a...

Talking about the weather... or something

April 2, 2024

Good morning! It's a timeless clichet: don't have anything to talk about? Talk about the weather. But lets be honest... The weather is super important--and...

How music and sports are kind of the same thing

March 26, 2024

Good morning friends! My greatest creative inspiration lately has come from books--and science fiction and speculative fiction books in particular. Out of...

New album is immanent

March 19, 2024

Hello friends! Welcome to the new version of this newsletter. I had to switch email services at the end of last month. With any luck, it will feel pretty...

Rhythm, humor and a fallen log

February 20, 2024

Hello friends! Today I have a video for you courtacy of the 3Arts Disability Culture Leadership Initiative. In October fellow artist Kennedy Healy and I sat...

This month: drums meet machines

February 6, 2024

Hello friends! First off, I need to let you know that this will be one of the last newsletters I'll be sending through Tiny Letter. Don't worry, these...

The underrated elements of rhythm

January 23, 2024

Hi all! First off, thank you to everyone who made it out to the Art Institute Saturday. It was tremendously uplifting to have the chance to share space and...

A celebration of sound

January 17, 2024

Sometimes I fear that music has become a visual thing. Elite entertainers are expected to have a stunning visual appearance--this has always the case. I'm...

Understanding the world through sound

January 2, 2024

Happy new year friends! I'm getting really excited to share my next album, The Harmony of Rhythm, with you all this winter. We're most likely looking at a...

A send off for 2023

December 28, 2023

Hello friends! I feel like this year has held the events and energetic shifts of at least three. Whether your thinking locally or globally, it's clear to me...

Celebrate with Calculated Discomfort this Saturday

December 13, 2023

Hey all! I can't believe it, but it's already time for the Winter Clearance Event. Every year since 2018 I've done a lowkey end-of-year show to celebrate all...

The harmony of rhythm

December 7, 2023

Hi all! I'm writing with a few updates I'm excited about, and that I hope you'll find interesting as well. New album this winter I'm really proud of what I...

Proudly announcing... the time to shop is now!

November 14, 2023

Hey all! Apologies for the subject line--I couldn't help myself. For the time being, there's nothing technically for sale here (plenty of places to buy stuff...

Halloween show Thursday and a new jam

October 24, 2023

Hello friends! It's been too long. The majority of my creative energy this past month has been spent rebuilding the monthly jam I've hosted for the past five...

Why I prefer a healthy earth-space balance

September 5, 2023

Ever since I started making my own music, I've experienced a push and pull between my interest in drums and acoustic instruments (earth sounds) and...

And the rhythm rolls on

August 29, 2023

Hello friends! First I wanted to extend a hardy thank you to everyone who made it out to the Golden Dagger for Chicago Rhythm All Stars. It was a great party...

Tonight is the night!

August 24, 2023

Hey friends! Just sending one last message in hopes you'll join us tonight at the Golden Dagger for the Chicago Rhythm All Stars. The night will kick off at...

What is rhythm?

August 22, 2023

What is rhythm? Rhythm is the beat of the music, but it's also the attitude. It's the perpetually bounding forward feeling of bebop, and the elegant bounce...

Why I love being a percussionist

August 14, 2023

Ever since I first sat at a friend’s drum set at the age of 11, I’ve ben enamored with the feeling of drums moving the air around them. Every strike...

Proudly presenting the Chicago Rhythm Allstars

August 8, 2023

Welcome to August friends! It's wild to think--this time last year Calculated Discomfort was preparing for our performance at the Grant Park summer dance...

Getting creative in July

July 5, 2023

Hello friends! First off, Raro's first album, "De Tu Miedo Aprendi" (From You're Fear I learned), just dropped today. You can find it on all streaming...

Why disability culture is the frontier

June 6, 2023

Happy summer in Chicago! It feels like we're in for a couple months of pure beauty in this city, so Cuerpos Justificados / Justified Bodies is throwing a...

Weaving worlds / trying to have a good time

May 23, 2023

Dear diary... I mean hello friends! I hope you're all well. I feel like these days bring no shortage of surprises, many being not-so-ideal, so I hope each of...

What this rock and roll lifestyle is really all about

May 10, 2023

Happy Wednesday! First off, thanks so much to everyone who tuned into the Raro broadcast, celebrated with us at UIC, or danced with us Saturday night at the...

This week is a celebration of latin music

May 3, 2023

Hello friends! I can't believe we're already charging forward into May. I still have to remind myself to date things 2023, not 2022. Thanks to everyone who...

The new tunes are here!

April 28, 2023

Happy Friday! Today is the day. Raro's first two songs Sombra and Meditation are live on all music streaming sites! Look us up on your platform of choice, or...

Que raro!

April 25, 2023

Happy Tuesday friends! First off, even though it's not technically related to the main part of this update, if you've got seven minutes free and are looking...

Two shows at two of Chicago's most welcoming venues this week

March 26, 2023

Hello friends! Hope you're having a relaxing Sunday wherever you may be. Everyone's been talking about how mild the winter in Chicago has been. Yes, it's...