Recording of the Week, Julius Rodriguez - Evergreen

Born and raised in New York but now living in LA, Julius Rodriguez has quickly established himself as a promising new figure within the world of contemporary jazz and beyond. His involvement in the underground NYC scene along with his participation in various lineups has allowed him to perform with a wide range of musicians and groups, including Isaiah Barr's Onyx Collective, which toured with A$AP Rocky in 2018.

The 25 year-old began his musical journey whilst still barely literate, coming to grips with musical notation at the same time as learning to read and write English. At an age you could count on one hand, he began receiving piano lessons from Audrey McCallum, a music educator and family friend who, incidentally, was one of the first Black students to graduate from the highly-regarded Peabody Institute in 1960. Having pursued classical studies before making the inevitable transition into jazz, Julius became influenced by his father's love for artists like Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane. As he began demonstrating a strong talent, the enthusiastic parent became actively involved in his son's musical education, even going as far as to drag the 11 year-old Julius to an after hours jam session at the renowned Smalls club in Greenwich Village upon learning that Jeremy Manasia, who would soon become Julius's piano instructor at the Manhattan School of Music's youth programme, was performing there.

After spending his teenage years immersed in prodigious pre-college arts divisions, it seemed like an act of nominative fate when Julius entered Juilliard – only for the musician to exit the school on account of its strictly tradition-minded curriculum (but not before finding himself within the midst of other members of his generational vanguard) in 2018. In fact, the multi-instrumentalist’s roommates in his first Manhattan apartment were his current bass player Philip Norris, pianist Isaiah Thompson and the Presto Award-winning saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins – all of whom would go on to receive tuition from Wynton Marsalis and his Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra!

Having cemented his auxiliary reputation as a versatile and innovative artist​, Rodriguez releases his sophomore album, Evergreen, a captivating blend of genres that showcases every inch of his versatile and innovative approach to music-making, or as one critic put it recently, “whatever else he feels like playing any given week.” For some, this new release may come as a shock in light of his debut Let Sound Tell All (2022). Described by NPR as “a project so dynamic that even the umbrella of jazz couldn’t quite contain its essence,” it flits in places between the sixties Motown hits of Stevie Wonder (‘Do I Do’) to the churchly  gospel balladry he grew up performing (‘In Heaven’), all coaxed beneath an umbrella of sprawling metropolitan energy. It's this unapologetic eclecticism which allows Rodriguez to shine, as he places the most affable and engaging aspects of his personality under the spotlight once more.

The album features a mixture of compositions that display Rodriguez's ability to percolate across intersections of contemporary music, as if by osmosis. “...I’m not just trying to be the jazz musician that everyone knew me as,” says Julius. “My vision was to create a different sound that’s unique to my influence. My mission is to break out of what people know and expect of me and just do what I like.” Tracks like the opening ‘Mission Statement’ highlight his knack for blending influences such as hyperpop and drum 'n' bass, creating a uniquely refreshing sound which the musician describes as “jazz pop-hop”. Collaborations play a significant role in Evergreen, with pivotal contributions cropping up from artists like trumpeter Keyon Harrold (whose album Foreverland  featured as our Recording of the Week earlier this year). ‘Love Everlasting’ blends a dreamy electric keyboard melody with Harrold’s mellifluous horn lines, appearing before Nate Mercereau on ‘Stars Talk’, a piece that merges synths with freestyled guitar samples into a marvellous rhapsodic fantasy. Another standout performance is on ‘Champion’s Call’, featuring Georgia Anne Muldrow, where her powerful vocals complement Rodriguez's energetic piano riffs  to create what can only be described as a spiritually uplifting experience​.

Rodriguez's ability to draw from his diverse musical background, from late-night NYC jam sessions to his collaborative work across contrasting urban genres, is evident throughout the recording. His innovative arrangements, such as the jazz waltz reinterpretation of Dijon's ‘Many Times’, further underscore his artistic evolution​. Overall, the multi-instrumentalist's latest album is a testament to his boundless creativity and his commitment to authentic self-expression, making it a noteworthy addition to the contemporary jazz landscape​.