I have always been blown away by the fact that humans—meat sacks puppeteered by strings of neurons—possess the ability to communicate thoughts, ideas, and feelings between consciousnesses with any degree of accuracy. We have to navigate vast maps of phonetic variety and struggle through overgrown thickets of expectation and convention. My puzzlement is universal, whether through written or spoken language, gesture, visual art, or music.

The pieces on Code Breaker are my musings on an array of subjects with an overarching theme of communication—understanding and misunderstanding—between individuals, groups, and on a societal level. The album illustrates the subtext found in situations political, interpersonal, medical, and discursive, via my chosen medium of music.

The freedom and abstraction that I have come to know through music-making has permeated how I speak and write. My relationship with language and music alike is somewhat synesthetic; I tend to choose words that feel good phonetically and evoke interesting colors in my brain. This approach, along with my inclination towards abstraction, is part of the reason I chose to address the subject through a largely wordless album. Even when lyrics are present, words describing color and motion are used to convey the experience of intercultural navigation from the perspective of a perpetual traveler.

It is a great honor to have the opportunity to share this music with you all. I want to thank everyone who contributed to or participated in this project. It would not have been possible without the generous support from KODA and Augustinusfonden. My heartfelt gratitude goes to my phenomenal band, whose musicality and openness leave me at a loss for words. An especially resounding thanks go to my partner in music, love, life, and everything else, Mim Crellin, who also designed the beautiful art of the album.

-Morten Duun