On.... The Take

A No-Nonsense Band That's Going Places

By Tricia Dunn

The Event, October 16 * November 15 Page 10

Could it be love?" Ask Michael Coones, lead vocalist and guitarist for The Take. It's his song. He wrote it, along with several other of the group's dozen and a half original tunes. He's proud of it, and rightfully so--it's a hot, hot number.

I walked from my car to the warehouse where they practice three or more times a week, and I couldn't believe it. They were playing "I'm A Believer." (Yes--The Monkees!) Now, if I told you the list of cover tunes these guys play, you'd get a completely wrong impression. While I was there, they played only their originals, but I glanced quickly at their list--and there were even a few old Beatles tunes on it as well. But don't get me wrong; they're a million light years beyond soft rock.

The Take are an ambitious, hard working group who want to be going places. They love their music, and play it their own unique way. Coones explains, "We don't want to do a lot of copy tunes. Good, high quality songs take time. And that's our goal."

Now rock has become a passe way to describe music, but rock is to New Wave what blues is to rock and what reggae is to ska--"ancient wave." There are flavors and influences that salt and pepper Their Take's music: Motley Crue, Rick Springfield, Loverboy and especially The Cars. But it's only influence, one of the ways we have to comparatively discuss music, it's derivations and predecessors. Sure these guys do their share of 1-4-5 stuff, commercial riffs and licks, simple lyrics that speak of women and love. But their attitude is wild and exciting. They have a truckload of personality and energy. They're original and vibrant. And did I mention cute??!!

Maybe that's why they won second place in the K-96 Battle of the Bands.

"Everyone contributes," says Michael Coones. Drummer Marvin "Q Tip" Dixon is impressive and inspiring to watch. He's the newest member of the band, but you'd never guess by the way he meshes with the band's overall sound. He plays some nice, tuneable Tama Octogons. His fills are intricate and tasteful. He chooses his cymbal work carefully, getting the right sound at the right time.

It's hard to decide who to watch in this band. They're all charismatic characters on stage. The bass player, Lex Williams, keeps a continual grin on his mug while he contributes a steady hand and some textured dynamics. Arthur Hall winds together melody and riff with his Roland Jupiter 6 keyboards, on sharp-sounding machine. They're a tight band, showing the value of hard practice and pure talent. The tightness Shows in the crisp changes they manage in all their songs. Coones has a strong, throaty voice and Lex and Arthur blend well in their back-up vocals, giving punch and guts to their arrangements.

"We're not Pigeonholed like most bands"

The Take is working hard to avoid what they call the "Salt Lake syndrome..." "We want to get out of Salt Lake," says Coones. To that end they'll be in the studio within four months to lay down as many tracks of original material as they can. The Take feels lucky, Coones feels, because "we're not pigeonholed like most other bands."

Evidence of their further diversity is the two videos they have made, both of which have aired on Salt Lake Music TV and may soon be aired on Channel 20. The videos are of surprisingly good quality, considering their bare-bones budget restrictions.

But reality does intrude on the dream sometimes. They knew the music business tended to be tenuous, but they never counted on the skydiving accident that left Lex with a broken left forearm a few months ago. It's tough to play bass lines after surgery, and the accident put them out of commission for a while. But it wasn't enough to stop this determined group for very long. The Take have their hearts in the dream and their hands on their instruments, but they don't kid themselves. Their feet are tapping time on the ground. They've got a trip planned for November to the West Coast. And they believe their growing cadre of fans proves that two videos, a handful of carefully selected concerts, and an energetic approach will pay off. So far, they look to be right on the money.

The Take is the featured act in October's Event talent Night, Thursday, October 25, at the Green Parrot private club. Come down to the Parrot and experience what Coones claims is "not rock, not New Wave... but Hard Wave." Whatever you call it, you can bet The Take has got it.