'Time Capsule' by Bill Warfield
Per his orchestra’s name, Bill Warfield’s vision of funk extends beyond the melodically percussive style of soul music that found commercial currency from the late-1960s to the early ‘80s. The trumpeter/composer channels the funk impulse in a slickly invigorating manner on the Hell’s Kitchen Funk Orchestra’s third album, Time Capsule.
As its title implies, Warfield and his players ply their considerable chops to vintage repertoire. And though the HKFO interpret funk and R&B forebears such as The Temptations and James Brown, the ensemble’s lounge funky aesthetic is omnivorous enough to reimagine one of Dionne Warwick’s Bacharach & David classics and what is likely the best-known number from an animated Disney movie in the current century. The latter two benefit from Chrissi Poland’s flexibly polished vocalizing.
The remakes of well-known oldies may give Capsule commercial appeal, but Warfield also leads his players through other compositions of his own and peers’creation with the kind of angular melody rigor that earns respect from aficionados looking for more than familiar melodies played in fresh ways. Time Capsule succeeds in Warfield’s goal to offer thrilling interpretations of some songs already embedded in many listeners memories, but it likewise creates new sonic tableaux worth revisiting as well.
