By Nick Ostrum
Recently selected as the new pianist of the Sun Ra Arkestra, Lafayette Gilchrist is a rare breed for jazz musicians. He straddles various styles – funk, soul, gospel, jazz, free (though somewhat less of this recently) – in a way that few can, avoiding the sonic muck or poseur output that too often comes out of such wide blending. This might be because Gilchrist does not really cross over but genuinely embodies just enough of each style to make it convincing. He is also an excellent composer, and increasingly so. What is more, he does not release a lot of music, which means each album his name graces has some special inspiration and refinement.
Move with Love captures Gilchrist (keyboard) on a live outing with his New Volcanoes octet. And, damn, can they riff on a groove. The horn section (Leo Maxey on trumpet, Christian Hizon on trombone, Shaquim Muldrow on sax) entangle and jaunt, mostly in tight formation. The rhythm section (Anthony “Blue” Jenkins on bass, Kevin Pinder on drums, Bashi Rose on percussion) continually lays heavy beats and tumbling Afro-Latin polyrhythms, through which Carl Filipiak – swinging between funk syncopations, straight melodies, and even a few excursions reminiscent of early Allman Brothers jams - wends and weaves his guitar. I am hesitant to say Gilchrist takes a back seat through much of this, but he does something of the sort. Rather than forging forward from the front, he provides propulsion from behind, and he does so in a fittingly understated manner. (Actually, none of the soloists really goes outrethough, maybe shaded by the Arkestra appointment, there are moments that hint in that direction.)
Stylistically, this leans further toward funk and 1970s R&B than the freeer musics (or contemporary composition) that usually grace these pages. Imagine if Sun Ra sat in with Donny Hathaway’s band and primarily blended in. Think Stevie Wonder tightness, but on the other side of pop flair and with a healthy dose of swampy blues struts.
I had not originally intended to review Move with Love, as I had thought it might be too straight-ahead. But it is just too infectious to let pass without mention.
Move with Loveis available as a download, CD, and vinyl on Bandcamp.
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