Soulful and ethereal. Dougie Stu’s debut - Familiar Future came out via Ropeadope last friday - is a uniquely jazz-attuned album drawing inspiration from artists and producers like Lonnie Liston Smith, Charles Stepney, David Axelrod, and Alice Coltrane. Familiar Future looks back to the golden era of soul jazz and r&b, while still sounding contemporary and cosmic in the way it explores something that is beyond what we are used to listen.

The Chicago-born multi-instrumentalist, producer, and composer has relocated to Oakland, where he has collaborated within many jazz, hip hop and experimental music scenes, co-writing and producing with various groups including Brijean or Jay Stone. On Familiar Future he invites a talented group of musicians to play along with him: Jeff Parker (who was one of Stuart’s biggest influences growing up in Chicago) on guitar; Maya Kronfeld on Fender Rhodes, Steve Blum on synthesizer; percussionists Brijean Murphy and John Santos; and drummer Hamir Atwal. These elements explode in creations led by Stu - his chromatic palette, harmonies and melodies are one-of-a-kind, and much too rare these days in contemporary music, regardless of genre. Familiar Future is available in CD and cassette formats, via Ropeadope.