9/10

Let me just say one thing right off the bat– In light of Cosmogramma, Steven Ellison, better known as Flying Lotus, is now peerless. His style is unmistakable, technically prodigious, remarkably well-honed, and as a result, virtually inimitable. Listen to the first fifteen seconds of “Clock Catcher” and it’s obvious; Ellison has placed himself in his own league with Cosmogramma.

Now, I acknowledge that this all may come off as hyperbole. After all, on the first few listens, Cosmogramma isn’t just puzzling, it’s weird. Flying Lotus’ known combination of vintage hip hop, video game samples and deliberately off-kilter percussion is even further refined here with use of a string orchestra, a liberal array of live instrumentation, and an avant-garde, experimentalist jazz pathos, likely derived from Ellison’s lineage to avant-jazz legend Alice Coltrane. Accordingly, don’t be surprised if parts of Cosmogramma sound close to unintelligible chaos the first few times you hear them. But after repeated spins, you start noticing things: The sheer groove of “German Haircut”, the bizarre, manic genius of “Pickled!”, the cinematic space-funk of “Zodiac Shit” and “Galaxy in Janaki”, and the countless melodies hidden beneath the Thom Yorke-featuring “…And the World Laughs With You” all prove Cosmogramma to be one of the most rewarding electronic releases in recent history. But what’s more important is that it’s obvious that Ellison invested ample time in making this record feel like the “space opera” he purports it to be: Whereas Flylo’s 2008 release Los Angeles’ arbitrary sequencing frequently makes it feel more like a mixtape than an album, Cosmogramma is effortlessly cohesive, making use of ambient transitions and string, percussion and bass guitar (Thundercat, Flylo’s bass collaborator here, is a fucking beast) motifs to produce a surprisingly movie-like whole. So in all, although Cosmogramma may be overwhelming to deal with at first, it really is worth the effort; it’s a potentially classic recording by a strikingly original artist.

7/10

Good Old War have come out with another great album: This self-titled album showcases both their growth and skill as musicians throughout. It incorporates more complex rhythms and riffs than their past work, all while adding an accordion to drummer Tim Arnold’s lineup of instruments (which already also includes keys and vocals). Their vocal melodies are still perfectly in tune, and here they actually take it beyond their usual Simon-and-Garfunkel-esque harmonies.

Songs like “My Own Sinking Ship” and “I Should Go” retain the same, catchy style that they brought out in their first album. The album also shows off not only Tim Arnold’s (arguably my favorite drummer of all time) drum skills, but his skills as a versatile musician and vocalist. On drums especially, he brings back the showing-off with rhythms and subtleties that drew me into his past work with Days Away as a kid.

But where it falls is in some of their new style: Some songs like “Sneaky Louise” are a bit too folksy and cute-sounding [for me at least] to take completely seriously. They just reminds me of the ex-hippie 40-year-old male nanny I had when I was growing up. The album also feels terribly short for having 12 full songs and 3 interludes. Luckily, it redeems itself in its new songs like “That’s Some Dream,” “Making My Life,” and “Get Some”: They all bring forth a new style, which clearly draws from their previous work, but adds in a classic folk sound with some slightly more complex, mature vocal melodies and compositions that keeps them at the front of my favorite musicians list, both as individuals and as a band.