Flying Lotus: Cosmogramma

Label: Warp

Steven Ellison, the artist known as Flying Lotus, was already widely praised for his 2008 album Los Angeles, but Cosmogramma is a jaw-droppingly awesome leap forward in imagination and creativity. In a year that’s already gifted us with many fine and surprising electronica albums, this is now the main contender for best of 2010. The stylistic eclecticism evident on Los Angeles burgeons spectacularly on Cosmogramma: drum ‘n’ bass, trip-hop, jungle, glitch, and dubstep (and probably more stuff I can’t recognize or name) beats mix with ambient, fusion jazz, mellow funk, and collaborations with saxophonist Ravi Coltrane (son of John and Alice Coltrane, the latter being Ellison’s great aunt), harpist Rebekah Raff, Thundercat (bass, vocals), singers Thom Yorke, Niki Randa, and Laura Darlington, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson (string arrangements), and more. The man can even make music from ping-pong balls. This is one of those rare electronica albums that’s so original it will appeal to listeners who don’t even care about electronica. (Steve)