Andrew Veeder on June 11th, 2013

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L.A.-based singer-songwriter-bassist Thundercat’s 2011 solo debut “The Golden Age of Apocalypse” was an inventive synthesis, co-produced by Flying Lotus on his Brainfeeder label, that blended jazz, pop, soul and experimental electronica. His sophomore effort, “Apocalypse,” out now digitally and July 9 on CD/LP, once again teams with FlyLo and further distorts genre lines with its falsetto, funk and complexities. The first single, “Lotus and the Jondy,” is a real treat of live, imaginative improvisation. Thundercat begins singing over a mix of analog warmth and soulful shimmer until a funky drum beat drops to kick off the chorus, and then promptly takes a sharp left into jazz territory amid a barrage of cymbal blasts from drummer Thomas Pridgen. The second half delves further down the rabbit hole into an all-out jazz explosion, a riotous percussive onslaught of grooves and crashes, bolstered by a fury of free-wheelin’ keys and frantic dancing bass line, before winding down with a twinkling delight, as if putting the cherry on top of a chaotic sundae. Written after the death of keyboardist Austin Peralta, former bandmate of both Thundercat and FlyLo, themes of loss echo throughout “Apocalypse,” but there’s no doubt Peralta would have been proud of the album’s sonic exploration.

||| Stream: “Lotus and the Jondy”