Lafayette Gilchrist & The New Volcanoes

Move with Love

Morphius

On the Baltimore-based, D.C.-born pianist and composer Lafayette Gilchrist’s 2023 Undaunted, my opening read this way, “... that course through a potpourri of styles from barrelhouse blues, stride, post hard bop, hip-hop, R&B, and his foundational go-go, the musical style of Washington D.C.  His angular style makes him a descendant of Monk, but his connection both to the blues and more abstract forms evokes pianists such as Andrew Hill and even Sun Ra.”  This is not to say I am by any means prophetic, but Gilchrist, as we write this, is indeed the newest member of the Sun Ra Arkestra.  Yes, that’s a long-winded introduction to Gilchrist’s other project, his ensemble New Volcanoes, which he has retooled from his 2018 Deep Dancing Suite for Move With Love, a blistering live recording for Baltimore’s Club Car.  The ensemble now includes returning guitarist Carl Filiapiak and bassist Anthony “Blue” Jenkins. Kevin Pinder is on the drum kit, joined by trumpeter Leo Maxey, trombonist Christian Hizon, saxophonist Shaquim Muldrow, and percussionist Bashi Rose. Saxophonist Ebban Dorsey and Efraim Dorsey guest on four of the six tracks.

The title is a plea – a positive embrace of love in these turbulent times. The album is as joyous and downright grooving as any. Gilchrist had his reservations before the performance, questioning whether the audience fit because The Club Car is a queer venue as opposed to a die-hard jazz establishment. Yet, it worked magically.

Opener “Cut Through the Chase” opens rather deliberately, morphing into a triumphant anthem. Gilchrist penned it as a release for the working people of his gritty city, a very danceable tune that basks in the joy of being alive, rife with Hizon’s trombone, percolating percussion, and unison brass with Gilchrist’s keyboards mostly in a supportive role except toward the latter half. The New Volcanoes sustain the fire through the hip-hop-infused title track, co-written with Pinder, as the band swells to a tentet, with the saxophonists stepping out and Pinder setting off fireworks.

The groove settles to a simmer for “Bamboozled,” a shot at the gaslighting and torrents of lies perpetrated by the ruling party. The brass makes way for a Rhodes solo from Gilchrist, who sustains the unrelenting, steady groove.  With the full band blaring, the tension threatens to reach a boiling point but retreats to the initial simmer. “BASTA,” titled by guitarist Filiapiak, means “Enough!” in Sicilian. The unshakable groove is set undeniably in D.C.’s go-go, making it impossible to refrain from toe tapping or booty shaking. Hizion solos ferociously in front of the horn choir before passing to Muldrow and the other saxophonists.

“Baby Steps” understandably has a march-like quality, almost like a NOLA brass band playing at 331/3 instead of at 45 rpm in mostly a full ensemble piece, save for the ever-present Hizon and a brief Gilchrist excursion in the latter half.  Closer, the high-powered funky “Crosspollination Aggregation” refers to society’s invisibles, in this case, including both the band and the audience, as it surely rattled the walls and roof of the relatively small club.

Those of you with great memories may recall that Gilchrist’s music graced the superb documentary series The Wire. In addition to The New Volcanoes and The Arkestra, which in recent years played often without a keyboardist in deference to the icon, Gilchrist also leads a more conventional jazz unit, the Sonic Trip Masters. Before these roles, he had a lengthy tenure with David Murray’s quartet. Needless to say, he is a major force to be reckoned with and is still emerging in terms of national awareness. Move With Love should significantly steepen his trajectory.

– Jim Hynes

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