Make a Move is Henry Threadgill's electric band in one sense of the word. Though guitarist Brandon Ross and bassist Stomu Takeishi play acoustic instruments as well, their primary focus in Make a Move is to make their stringed instruments scream unto the heavens. Filling out the group is Threadgill on alto and flute, Bryan Carrott on vibes and marimba, and the only holdover from Zoo-Id, Dafnis Prieto, on drums. This set is issued simultaneously with Zoo-Id's Up Popped Two Lips, also on Pi. This set opens abstractly enough with "Platinum Inside Straight," a meditation on extended mode and interval, with Brandon Ross playing a gorgeous acoustic line on top of Carrott's marimba and then delicately chorded vibes. Takeishi's bass holds the thing to the ground by playing a small series of tone frames over and over, and Threadgill grabs one short flute solo. Things heat up and get funky on "Don't Turn Around," which is driven by the funk in the rhythm section's approach. There's a knotty arpeggio here and there by Ross and Carrott before Threadgill turns "Harlem Nocturne" inside out with his alto. This is film noir soundtrack music George Clinton-style. There is also the trace of the Ornette Coleman-styled Texas blues slithering in and out of Threadgill's playing. The vibes' solo is so off-kilter, it barely holds the time signature and would move off into inner space if it weren't for the chunky, groove-laden bassline of Takeishi. The hippest track on the set, though, is "Shake It Off," with the staggered bass and guitar solos that constitute the track's opening melodic statement. The drive Prieto puts in to keep the pair in track is considerable, and Takeishi just takes off against the snares, followed closely by the arpeggios and razored riffs of Ross. But before it moves off into fusion land, Threadgill and Carrott bring it back, with flute and marimbas whirling around each other and staggering the atonality of the strings with wondrously loopy and flighty playing grounded in minor-seventh modalities and open-toned sonorities, which keep the bassist a part of the rhythm section and Ross in painterly position. This is deft footwork on the part of Threadgill as a leader, who lets his musicians shine and keeps them focused on the task at hand. Everybody's Mouth's a Book is as solid top to bottom as its companion release on Pi. - Thomas Jurek
In his previous groups, Henry Threadgill has demonstrated a penchant for unusual instrumental combinations -- tubas, accordion, harmonium, harpsichord, cellos, etc. -- but in this newest version of Make a Move, he opts for a relatively conventional line-up. The rhythm section of Dafnis Prieto on trap drums and bassist Stomu Takeishi is often inspired, with the dazzling twenty-two year old Cuban literally soloing from start to finish on many of the CD's eight tracks, yet still driving the music forward. Bryan Carrott's marimba and vibes contribute further percussive accents, and the intricate multiple meters and contrapuntal figures add up to a rhythmic feast for the listener. When Brandon Ross kicks in on electric guitar, the quartet sometimes sounds like the old Gary Burton group at the top of its game. Ross is a remarkably adaptable guitarist, playing a crisp, precise acoustic on a chamber jazz piece such as "Platinum Inside Straight," and then ramping up on electric during the modal, Coltrane-ish "Where Coconuts Fall," leaning on the distortion pedal as he evokes the spirit of the late Sonny Sharrock.
Even without Threadgill, this quartet would be a great listen, but his compositions and instrumental work take the music to a whole other level. As both composer and musician, Threadgill has a strong connection to Ornette Coleman, but while his music, like Coleman's, is often abstract and angular, with unexpected key changes and multiple melody lines, it also has a stronger intellectual component than Coleman's, and is often substantially written out.
Threadgill's knowledge of the jazz tradition is both encyclopaedic and catholic; he moves gracefully from classically-flavoured chamber jazz and pensive ballads to spiky blues, free jazz and a healthy heap o' funk. As a soloist, he's equally impressive - both economical and authoritative. His flute is lyrical, but also lean and sinewy, while his alto playing is punchy and sometimes ecstatic, in the manner of late Coltrane or even Albert Ayler. Compositionally, Threadgill's vectors are seldom obvious, but when he arrives at his destination, the journey always makes perfect sense. Eat your heart out, Wynton Marsalis, this is the REAL future of jazz. - Bill Tilland
Tracks
1. Platinum Inside Straight
2. Don't Turn Around
3. Biggest Crumb
4. Burnt Til Recognition
5. Where Coconuts Fall
6. Pink Water Pink Airplane
7. Shake It Off
8. What To Do, What To Do
BRANDON ROSS electric guitar, acoustic guitar
DAFNIS PRIETO drums, trap drums
STOMU TAKEISHI electric bass, acoustic bass guitar
BRYAN CARROTT vibraphone, marimba
HENRY THREADGILL alto saxophone, flute
All music by Henry Threadgill
Recorded February 2001 at MusicSound Studio, West Orange NJ
Pi Recordings - PI01