Flying Lotus is the musical alias of Steven Ellison, great-nephew of Alice Coltrane and creator of some of the Cartoon Network's wackier promo music for the cult series Adult Swim. Odd personal details notwithstanding, FlyLo (as he is known to fans) is first and foremost a hip-hop producer; especially if the definition of hip-hop stretched to included fractured beats and a pervasive free-jazz influence. LOS ANGELES, the young producer's debut, is steeped in slippery analog electronics, anchored by the loose, swing-heavy boom-bap of contemporary masters such as J Dilla and Madlib.
Professional Reviews
Spin (p.98) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "Flying Lotus' spaced-out visions are the album's trump card, a computerized mesh of hip-hop beats at dub-like tempos."
The Wire (p.47) - "[W]hen Alice Coltrane's harp and Gonja Sufi's rich as molasses vocals appear towards the close, they merge seamlessly with the intoxicating atmospheres of a genuinely distinctive album."
Q (Magazine) (p.125) - "Ellison's percussive arrangements here make nonsense of the divisions between electronica hip hop and jazz..."
Mojo (Publisher) (p.64) - Ranked #47 in Mojo's "The 50 Best Albums Of 2008" -- "Flying Lotus has inherited his great-aunt Alice Coltrane's gift for cosmic composition."
Record Collector (magazine) (p.104) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "LA-based Steven Ellison works with a collage of electronic, indie and hip-hop beats....A cacophony of noise, beats and hip-hop vocals placed well back in the mix combine to evoke a dream-state confusion."
Clash (Magazine) (p.63) - Ranked #36 in Clash's "The 40 Best Albums of 2008" -- "2008's most instrumentally interesting hip-hop record..."
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