Alex Otey has long been a shape-shifter in the world of modern jazz, but Darwin AI: Survivor Choice might be his most ambitious statement yet. It’s a dazzling 37-minute set that redefines what jazz fusion can feel like in 2025. Known as an award-winning pianist, singer, trumpeter, and composer/arranger, Otey’s career has been threaded with collaborations alongside giants like Grover Washington Jr. and Richie Cole, as well as GRAMMY®-nominated and winning projects. This record distills that pedigree into something simultaneously reverent and refreshing.

Across seven tightly woven tracks, Otey blends the harmonic sophistication of classic jazz with the sleek accessibility of pop, creating an atmosphere that feels both intricate and effortlessly inviting. The album’s foundation is Otey’s virtuosity, notably his trumpet playing crackles with warmth and precision, while his piano and keyboard work bring an intoxicating mix of groove and lyricism. The basslines, always alive, always inventive, lay down rhythms that keep the record in constant forward motion. It’s modern jazz at its finest, splashed with radiant pop flourishes that never water down its depth.

There’s a vibrancy here that recalls Steely Dan in their prime, not in mimicry but in shared sensibility. Like those legends, Otey understands that sophistication doesn’t have to come at the expense of soul.

What’s most impressive is the record’s emotional range despite its upbeat, vibrant center of gravity. There are moments of sheer exuberance, sunlit and celebratory, but also passages that stretch into introspection, showing Otey’s command of contrast. Every phrase feels intentional, every solo a thread woven into the larger tapestry rather than a detour. That cohesion is what gives the album its power; it never loses sight of the whole while dazzling in the details.

In the end, Darwin AI: Survivor Choice isn’t just another jazz fusion record, it’s a reminder of how timeless and thrilling this genre can still be when filtered through a restless, imaginative mind. Otey has built a soundscape where intellect and instinct collide, where groove and grandeur coexist, and where the listener can get lost in the sheer joy of musicianship. It’s the kind of album that makes you want to hit replay not because you missed something, but because you don’t want to leave the world it creates.

You can’t miss our interview with Alex, but once you’re finished, you need to dive into this fantastic album. You can do so and follow along for more by clicking those important links below!

Listen to “Darwin AI: Survivor Choice”