At first blush, Total Refreshment Centre (TRC) may not seem like a musical community but instead, conjure up some kind of vacation imagery. The spelling of “Centre” though is a clue that this mysterious place must be in a UK-related locale. Indeed, the TRC resides in London as a transformed warehouse with a long history. You’ve also doubtlessly noticed that Blue Note Records has taken an interest in the new waves of jazz emanating from London in recent years. Thus, Transmissions from Total Refreshment Centre is an eclectic sampling of the current scene that draws from new school jazz, hip hop, dub, soul, funk and drill (a subgenre of hip-hop that originated in Chicago).
Like most albums of this nature, some tracks will appeal to some and not others. TRC original Soccer96 and MC Kieron Boothe kick off the proceedings with “Visions,” a bit of London spin on hip-hop flavored with melodic trumpet, drums, bass, and a myriad of keyboards manned by Danalogue of The Comet Is Coming. Trumpeter Byron Wallen follows. He has decades of experience and connects the younger players of today with the previous generation that created seminal outfits including Jazz Warriors, with whom he played. Here he built new string arrangements for ‘Closed Circle’, which he’d written in 2002 in remembrance of London teenager Stephen Lawrence, who was murdered in a racist attack, and whose legacy still resonates today. As such, the tune bears a solemn, reverential tone in sharp contrast to the opener with Wallen’s trumpet weaving lines with Tony Kofi’s baritone sax set against the strings for interesting textures. Again, we encounter a familiar name: drummer Tom Skinner was one of the twin drummers in the now-defunct Sons of Kemet.
Drummer Jake Long leads a spacey electronic sextet through “Crescent (City Swamp Dub)” as synths, guitar, and drone guitar create a swirling, swooshing ethereal ambience punctuated with a baritone sax, bluesy guitar leads, and Long’s steady beats in the lengthiest track weighing in at eight and half minutes. The group Matters Unknown has vocalist Miryam Solomon fronting a balanced woodwind/brass octet in a lush groove that shifts pace mid-way into pianist Lyle Barton’s minimalist piano outro on “Eloquence.” Melbourne’s Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange delivers a funky dance number, “Isa,” featuring vocalist Noah Slee, buoyed by sizzling percussion and twin synths.
.Keyboardist Neue Grafik teams with vocalist Brother Portrait and tenorist Xvngo (say it ‘Shango’) on “Black,” a flowing combination of spoken word and a heavy sort of dub. The group Resavoir closes with an avant-garde, updated reading of Charles Tolliver’s “Plight” from 1970. Resavoir’s multi-instrumentalist Will Miller and TRC’s founder Blondin bonded over the record in Chicago and recorded it at Total Refreshment Centre. Sen Marimoto’s saxophone along with Miller on trumpet, synth, and piano take to the tune into astral-like realms.
We can’t overstate the eclectic nature of this offering. Like most various artist projects, you may connect with some and shy away from others. For this writer, perhaps with a traditionalist bent to a fault, “Plight” and “Crescent (City Swamp Dub)” are the highlights while the others are interesting curiosities that remain mere glimpses rather than tracks with staying power. Overall though, there are some sparkling moments and it’s a worthy glimpse into ‘transmissions’ from across the pond.
.
