“In Wisconsin,” the joke goes, “we have two seasons: winter and road construction.” Growing up in Madison, I remember watching construction crews spend whole summers repairing the potholes and cracks that decorated our roads. And every winter, I watched the freeze/thaw cycle get the better of that same pavement, calling for identical repairs the next year. It seemed ridiculous to me. “Why haven’t we found a solution yet?” I asked my dad. It didn’t make sense that for all our technological advancements, the whole Midwest was still caught in an annual battle against…ordinary H2O. But it wasn’t just H2O, I learned. It was physics. You can’t fight physics. You can sidestep it, sure, but you’re never going to change the fact that when water seeps beneath East Wash and hits 32°, it’s going to pave its own way—regardless of what you or your car have to say about it. Somewhere along the line, something clicked in me: hey, human nature is kind of like that too. Try as we might to subvert our own corrupt desires, we find ourselves repairing our own proverbial East Washington Avenues year after year. It’s an expensive process, and our hard work pays off only for a season. I’m not a human nature doctor, obviously—there’s only One of those—but my goal as an artist is to start conversations about this very important topic. While my demo release Pass It On hinted at these themes, Tactics is a more calculated attempt to provoke thought about the human condition. It opens with a reprise of “Take 21” (a human nature anthem) and goes on to share stories about how even though “none is righteous, not even one,” we can take hope in being “justified as a gift by God’s grace” (Rom. 3:10, 24). -- All songs written by Alma Cook. All vocals arranged & performed by Alma Cook (except "Hotshot" duet featuring Chrissi Hartigan). Produced by Chris Thigpen, who also served as musical director on all songs except "Worn." Recorded at Studio 2424 in Chicago, IL. Engineered, mixed & mastered by Danny Christy with additional production work by Chris Thigpen & Alma Cook. Artwork by Olivia Boyd. Take 21 arr. Alma Cook & Chris Thigpen; e. guitar: Jeff Swanson; piano: Justin Bowse; e. bass: Chris Thigpen; drums: Sam Jewell; trumpet: Bobby Cooper; a. sax: Jack Willson Blind Side song & horns arr. Alma Cook; e. guitar: Jeff Swanson; Rhodes: Justin Bowse; bass: Chris Thigpen; drums: Sam Jewell; trumpet: Bobby Cooper; a. sax: Jack Willson Honey arr. Alma Cook & Chris Thigpen; e. guitar: Jeff Swanson; synth strings: Justin Bowse; upright bass: Chris Thigpen; drums: Sam Jewell Head Rush arr. Alma Cook & Chris Thigpen; e. guitar: Jeff Swanson; piano: Matt Jones; bass: Chris Thigpen; drums: Sam Jewell Tactics arr. Alma Cook & Chris Thigpen; e. guitar: Jeff Swanson; piano: Justin Bowse; bass: Chris Thigpen; drums: Sam Jewell; trumpet: Bobby Cooper; a. sax: Jack Willson Hotshot feat. Chrissi Hartigan arr. Alma Cook & Chris Thigpen; horns arr. Alma Cook; e. guitar: Jeff Swanson; organ: Cornell Thigpen; bass: Chris Thigpen; drums: Sam Jewell; trumpet: Bobby Cooper; a. sax: Jack WIllson Worn arr. Chris Kaczmarek, Regi Drake & Conor Fortune; e. guitar: Regi Drake; piano: Justin Bowse; bass: Chris Kaczmarek; drums: Conor Fortune; a. sax: Jack Willson New Nation arr. Alma Cook; horns arr. Jack Willson; ac. guitar: Jeff Swanson; Rhodes: Justin Bowse; bass: Chris Thigpen; drums: Sam Jewell; trumpet: Bobby Cooper; a. sax: Jack Willson