Hot New Local Single: Room3

I have the receipts to prove that I’ve been trying to get my hands on studio recordings from Room3 for quite some time. After I saw an explosive set from them on a flatbed truck at Grand Old Day in 2022, I’ve been jonesing to share their magic on our airwaves. The day has finally arrived! Room3’s new single is titled “Moqueca” and it does not disappoint! I’m getting ahead of myself though, let me tell you a bit about Room3.
Room3 got started as a jazz combo at the University of Minnesota practicing in the actual Room 3 at Ferguson Hall under the tutelage of instructor Phil Hey. The group features powerhouse drummer RAWTWHYLAH (aka Colin Mitchell), bassist and overalls enthusiast Beck Madson, keyboardist Eli Awada and the most recent addition to the group, sax player Jovon Williams, who will be a familiar face to anyone who has seen L.A. Buckner and BiG HOMiE. The group commands the firepower of a group stacked with virtuosic young players. But groups of young virtuosos rarely sound so connected while playing music together.  The Room3 difference is that their collaborative Three-Musketeers-like spirit delivers an aesthetically pleasing sound. It’s comforting when one can hear young players and know they have all done the hours in the practice room necessary to deliver the goods. It is invigorating and downright inspiring when it sounds like the players studied together, listened to records together and came out of the practice sessions with an idea worth exploring. And they certainly do some exploring on the tune “Moqueca.”
From the unadorned Rhodes opening, to the luscious flute doubling on the melody, to the athletic powerhouse performance from RATWHYLAH on kit and percussion, I hear a strong connection on “Moqueca” to the Return to Forever/Chick Corea tune “Spain.” But this is no carbon copy of Corea’s signature chart. Room3 alum Desmond Teague jabs and explores on his flute on a half time section and Beck Madson’s rock solid foundation is so compelling that I can almost still hear it when he steps up to join Awada and Teague on portions of the melody. Extra points to RATWHYLA and Evin Espinoza for providing invigorating percussion that pushes the tune to the next level. The outro pushes the tune even further, carrying a blast-beat sound filled with soprano sax from Jovon Williams before the band smooths it out for the last thirty seconds. By the end of the six minutes I’ve taken a whole journey with Room3 and I can’t wait until we get to take a trip together again.
Room3 plays Best New Bands of 2024 on Friday January 31 at First Avenue. I’m one of the hosts of the event.
Hot New Local Singles highlights new, local songs. Minnesota has a lot of great jazz, funk, soul, and jazz- adjacent music, and Jazz88 is highlighting what is fresh.

 


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