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Sultan Stevenson emerged from the ranks of the London-based Tomorrow’s Warriors forging house in 2020 and soon stood out for his personal touch. A regular trio followed, as did an album and a catalogue of club dates and tours. Now in his mid-twenties, the London pianist’s modal voicings, syncopated single note lines and gospel shades spice the modern jazz mainstream with originality and flair.
Stevenson’s second album, El Roi, confirms his equally mature grasp of jazz composition on a set tackling themes of faith and identity. Harmonic structures provide firm foundations for narratives to flow, voicings add subtle emotional shades and melodies are uncluttered and appealing on the ear. The core of the album presents the five-movement suite “Those Who Believe”, written for the trio in 2022. The remaining three pieces, focused on questions of identity, add Josh Short on trumpet/flugelhorn and Soweto Kinch on tenor saxophone.
The set begins with two quintet pieces. The title of the first, “Unspeakable Happiness”, is taken from an enslaved protagonist’s description of freedom in the Steve McQueen film 12 Years a Slave. The theme gives hope an undertow of doubt, voicings are sweet and soulful and sprightly solos follow the form. The second composition, the pensive “A Region in My Mind”, is a beautifully voiced rumination on the resilience of the inner self and the album’s strongest track.
The narrative of Stevenson’s five-movement suite describes a journey from hope and belief to faith. It begins with the sombre “Arise”, its mood made more potent by the resonance of Stevenson’s unaccompanied piano touch. The twists and turns of “My Unbelief” explode into bustling walking bass, “Purpose” unfolds steadily over hip-hop beats and the upbeat swing of “Wisdom” is introduced with a snare drum crack. The suite ends with the calm piano and brushstroke beats of “I Believe”.
The quintet returns for “El Roi”, named after the biblical God of sight, and the album’s final track. Moody brass harmonies entice and saxophonist Kinch digs in as the piece moves imperiously from sensuous walk to heady riff-based interplay.
★★★★☆
‘El Roi’ is released by Edition Records
