Brandon Coleman Blasts Off Into the Future Funkiness With Interstellar Black Space

Kamasi Washington's keytar master shows why he's also an incredible frontman.

Drop into “On The One,” the opening song on Intersteller Black Space, and you’ll quickly understand why Kamasi Washington refers to Brandon Coleman as Professor Boogie.

The track is a boisterous takeoff into the funky unknown, which immediately recalls Prince’s work with Morris Day and The Time. While primarily known for his work in West Coast Jazz Wizard Washington’s band, Coleman dons his Professor Boogie persona to demonstrate why he can also be a flashy frontman while dancing up and down the keyboard.

“(James Brown) wrote about how enslaved people were banned from playing instruments. I think plantation owners knew it was a means of communication, so they were given only one day of rest from working tirelessly all year – and on their one day off they were allowed to play music and do whatever they wanted. They would start to build drums in the morning and literally play drum music all day from sunup to sundown, well into the night. The story is that across all these different plantations from miles and miles away all you’d hear was the drums – and all of them, across plantations, were connected by “the one”. So much of modern music is based on “the one”. It’s a Negro thing that’s the basis of funk: James Brown, Larry Graham, Sly Stone, Bootsy Collins. So ‘On the One’ is my homage to the lineage. I wanted something uplifting.”

- Brandon Coleman on his inspiration for Interstellar Black Space

Interstellar Black Space is the second solo record for Coleman - he also has featured for Flying Lotus, Thundercat, and many others not limited to Brainfeeder, the brilliant Los Angeles-based indie electronic and hip hop label that births so many of these sophisticated collaborations. Here, Coleman’s theme may be melodies for your personal space voyage, but Grammy-winning Keyon Harold brings things back to Earth twice with his trumpet work on the more traditional jazz leanings of “We Change - Part II” and “Astral Walk,” both of which allow Coleman’s crew to shine in a variety of ways.

Also, must-hear is “We Change - Part I,” which finds the band grooving to Kamasi Washington’s rollicking tenor saxophone supported by a hypnotic combo of strings, synth bass, and otherworldly phasers. Coleman also shows off his talents for crafting sultry soul ballads with “Just Stay” and the record’s latest single, “Be With Me,” which Coleman says was written in 30 minutes and recorded in one take. Give it a listen to be blown away by this little stat.

As a longtime fan of Kamasi Washington and anything from the Brainfeeder family, it’s fantastic to see Brandon Coleman blossom as he continues to deliver fresh future funk that also looks back to the past in its reverence. His debut, Resistance, was a favorite of mine a few years ago before Check This Out!, and I’ve been looking forward to Instersteller Black Space since it was announced with an energetic first single, “Blast Off.”

If you need proof of its excellence, I didn’t get to any other records this weekend because of having Intersteller Black Space on repeat, which hasn’t happened often this year.

Give Brandon Coleman a spin now and eagerly fall down the Brainfeeder rabbit hole.

Interstellar Black Space is available now on Brainfeeder.

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Hear songs from these albums and more on the Good Ass Songs 2022 playlist!