It turns out those couple of singles were actually teasing something bigger. On the heels of “Ingo Swann” and “Garmonbozie,” Flying Lotus is back with the surprise EP Spirit Box. The EP—Steven Ellison’s first project since 2021’s soundtrack album for the Netflix series Yasuke, and his first non-soundtrack work since 2019’s Flamagra—is available now.
If you don’t know the name Flying Lotus, there’s a good chance you know his psychedelic sound or his collaborators. Flamagra featured a murderer’s row of off-beat talent, enlisting everyone from Tierra Whack, Solange, and Anderson .Paak to George Clinton and David Lynch. Ellison was also behind the “Ozzy’s Dungeon” segment in 2022’s V/H/S/99 and has frequently worked with kindred artist Thundercat; together, the two produced “Wesley’s Theory,” the opening track of Kendrick Lamar’s landmark album To Pimp A Butterfly.
While the previous Flying Lotus releases have skewed more toward jazz and funk, Spirit Box has so far leaned more in the direction of house music. The instrumental early single “Ingo Swann” is very danceable (and, in the opinion of this writer, a great accompaniment for writing). But Ellison's music has long been a veritable potpourri of genres and references, so there's a good bet the rest of the tracks on Spirit Box will be too. You can check out the full track list below.
