Kolton Harris

Early last June, after the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis policeman, Kolton Harris, then-director of Writer’s Block InK, reacted in the most positive way possible: he created. An accomplished musician, writer and speaker, Harris, a native of Groton, and friends/ collaborators Jaden Williams, Ryan Parker and Zachary Koval, wrote and recorded a song called the heart-piercing “Another One Dead.”

Skillfully and emotionally melding dark ambience and haunting beats with simmering anger and the mournful qualities of a funeral hymn, “Another

One Dead” is an incredibly moving and visionary piece of music. On July 4, Harris and Parker, after working in their Groton Lunara Studio with other guest musicians including guest vocalist Moriah Jackson, released a subsequent and powerful five-song EP called “4 Freedom.”

The tunes on “4 Freedom” include the title track, “More Than Apologies,” “Black Joy,” and “Together We Will Win” and comprise a deft , twirling amalgam of styles fueled by social injustice and the sad processional of racism in America. The whole EP is as fresh, powerful and musically competitive as any recording you’re likely to hear in contemporary music.

“I want to emphasize that hope is on the horizon and we’re turning a corner,” says Harris, a devout Christian. “To be honest, a lot of of the content of the music comes from inside; from my fatith. I contextualize from that and that helps fight the feeling that, sometimes, it looks like there’s no progress in society. But I believe that, when we ground ourselves in art and creativity, that’s what’s going to bring us to the other side.”

The quick turnaround for the original “Another One Dead” single and then the EP was, Harris says, “a lightning in a bottle experience. The songs came really quickly, and once we got in the studio, our experimental instincts took over. The friendship and creative connection Zack and Jaden and I share is so beautiful.”

Response to the music has been very strong, Harris says, and there’s more music on the horizon.

“Seeing and hearing people’s reactions to the songs made us very proud and helped us realize how a powerful work of art can help bring healing and hope,” Harris says. “We were moved by a lot of issues to create these songs. Now, we’re trying to be a little patient and let our audience slow down and savor the experience rather than scarf it down. But there’s definitely more in the pipeline.”

For more information on Kolton Harris or to stream his music, go to Instragram or Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music.