Actionspeak is drummer / composer Tomas Fujiwara's debut as a leader. The Hook Up is a two-year old quintet featuring Mary Halvorson, Brian Settles, Jonathan Finlayson and Danton Boller. Featured here are seven Fujiwara originals influenced by such diverse inspirations as Wayne Shorter, Talib Kweli, AZ, Haruki Murakami, and Meshell Ndegeocello.
An "accomplished debut," wrote Nate Chinen in the The New York Times, "its aesthetic points toward Wayne Shorter, particularly his writing for the Miles Davis Quintet of the 1960s: sleek, enigmatic post-bop, more suggestive than demonstrative."
"The drummer has named his latest band appropriately. Ensembles can go anywhere if the intra-group chemistry is cooking, and throughout the new Actionspeak, Fujiwara sounds like he's got his mates on speed dial: they're instantly there whenever he needs 'em, offering clusters of sound that span from squawky celebration to reflective prayer. That's especially true with bassist Danton Boller, who emboldens every thrust the drummer makes and reminds listeners that connections are paramount on the jazz bandstand." — Jim Macnie, The Village Voice
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