Los Angeles producer Flying Lotus has spoken about the inspiration Alice Coltrane provided him on his new album ‘Cosmogramma’.
Real name Steve Ellison, Flying Lotus comes from a formidable musical family. His aunt was Alice Coltrane, whose husband John Coltrane was simply one of the most important jazz musicians of the 20th century.
Yet less well known is the output of Alice Coltrane. Her deeply spiritual works blended jazz with traditional music from India provoking lengthy raga like meditations.
Deeply emotive, it seems that Alice Coltrane’s work helped inspire her nephew on his new album ‘Cosmogramma’. Speaking to Pitchfork Flying Lotus explained that he needed to put some emotion into his productions.
“At the time I was making the music, there was a point where I felt like it lost a lot of the necessary emotion I wanted to come across” he claimed. “I had been hearing so much soulless stuff come out, a lot of this electronic stuff, it was like an overload of that shit. I started listening to my aunt’s stuff again. I was like, fuck man, this is what I want people to feel, not the other stuff, the technical stuff. This is what’s real, this moment.”
Continuing, Flying Lotus outlined how his family’s heritage has influenced him. “I obviously have phases with my family’s music. Going through Trane for a little bit recently helped me understand it more” he explained.
“Same with my aunt’s stuff; it really resonated with me last year, how important it was. I took it personally. I can honestly understand why she made the music she made after John Coltrane died. I can see why she’d be inspired to make those sounds. Those specific sounds with those specific instruments totally made sense to me.”
“I feel like she was grieving through the music, understanding his passing. I know it must have shaken her entire universe. I know what she went through. I get it. I’m not the kind of person to shy away from my family connection, we’re all really close. I wanted to feel part of that thing.”
Flying Lotus’ new album ‘Cosmogramma’ is out now.
