Flying Lotus Working on Jazz Album

Flying Lotus currently has a full plate of project in front of him, including producing Thundercat’s forthcoming album, hitting the road for his current spring tour, and even mentoring Odd Future’s Earl Sweatshirt. Finding some free time to sit down and speak with BrightestYoungThings, FlyLo went on to add to his list, as he shared that he’s currently in the works on a brand new jazz-inspired album. Being that he has family ties with jazz legend John Coltrane, fans should be eager to hear what’s to come from the Brainfeeder general. Down below you can check out excerpts from the in-depth interview, which also includes discussion of his upcoming Brainfeeder compilation project, and his recent workings with Hudson Mohawke and Madlib.

What have you been working on lately?

Right now, I’m on my jazz shit, man.  I’m doing a lot of jazz stuff.  We’re trying to make something that’s kind of a geek album.  There are crazy time signatures and really intense playing, just because we want to go there.  We want to play really fast.  It’s gonna be fun, man.

Does that fall under Flying Lotus or is it a thing of its own?

We’ll see.  At the moment, there a lot of people involved.  I’m gonna keep it that way, so we’re probably going to call it something else.

It seems like you’ve sought out more collaboration with each passing year.

I love what other people can contribute so much.  I love working alone too, but at the same time, I love that someone can bring something to the table that I haven’t thought of.  They bring different textures.  I want to explore different things.  I make a lot of music, and a lot of my shit could have used a voice on it.  Some of it doesn’t need it though.  It all depends. I’m working on this [Captain] Murphy record right now.   There’s not a lot of people on it.  It’s mostly just me doing everything.  That’s just what it calls for.

Is this a follow-up to Duality?

Yeah.  All the beats are done.  I just gotta write all the shit.  I’m gonna try to do that while I’m on tour – try to write all the raps.  It all depends on if I can get in the zone.

Are you soliciting beats from other producers again?

I got a few.  I got all the beats that I need.  I did most of them, but there are a couple people that I got beats from, like Jeremiah Jae, Hudson Mohwake, and Madlib.  Other than that, I’m doing everything.

What was your reaction to Hudson Mohawke signing to G.O.O.D. Music?

I think that’s good for him.  It’s such a good place for what he’s doing.  There’s part of me that’s always gonna be like, “Oh man, watch yourself.”  But his tunes suggest that he’s always wanted to make big records, so that’s a nice place for him.

To read the full interview, be sure to check out BrightestYoungThings now by clicking here.