Flying Lotus to Release ASH Original Soundtrack, Shares 'Oxygene' Single

Milan Records has announced the March 19 release of ASH (ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK) by FLYING LOTUS and shares the album’s lead single “OXYGENE." The full soundtrack album features music written by Flying Lotus for his latest directorial effort, a sci-fi horror thriller, starring Eiza González and Aaron Paul.

Introducing the score is lead single “OXYGENE,” its layers of atmospheric synthwork and dark, pulsating rhythms showcasing the breadth of the larger 27-track collection, which works hand-in-hand to fully immerse viewers into the film’s alien setting. The single arrives alongside the film’s worldwide premiere at SXSW today, which will be followed by its theatrical release on Friday, March 21 from RLJE Films and Shudder.

Of the album, FLYING LOTUS says, "Working on the score was both inspiring and challenging. I spent most of the time writing it during the final postproduction and color grading when I was in New Zealand, running back and forth to different rooms to check on progress and going into my lil cave there and working with just my laptop and controller. I drew inspiration from composers who primarily just used synths to create soundtracks, like John Carpenter, Akira Yamaoka, Angelo Badalamenti, and Vangelis. It was a great time trying to find a distinctive sound for the movie that also felt fresh and unique for me to explore."

ABOUT ASH

On the mysterious planet of Ash, Riya (González) awakens to find her crew slaughtered. When a man named Brion (Paul) arrives to rescue her, an ordeal of psychological and physical terror ensues while Riya and Brion must decide if they can trust one another to survive.

ABOUT FLYING LOTUS

It's impossible to examine the music of the last 15 years without considering Steven Ellison, aka Flying Lotus. A creative of many mediums, Ellison is just as likely to appear at Sundance with a film as he is to perform at Coachella. His run of six studio albums, featuring collaborators like Thom Yorke, Mac Miller, Erykah Badu, David Lynch, and longtime friend Thundercat, solidified him as one of the decade's driving musical forces. So renowned is his aptitude that everyone from Kendrick Lamar, who recruited Ellison for the landmark To Pimp A Butterfly, to Cartoon Network's Adult Swim turns to him for inspiration. Pitchfork designated the LA-based artist an icon of the past 25 years, and he won a Grammy for his work on Thundercat’s It Is What It Is and was nominated for Producer of the Year at the 63rd Grammy Awards. 

Growing up in LA, Ellison was immersed in a rich environment of artistic inspiration - with musical legends, Marilyn McLeod and Alice Coltrane in his family, and his interests spanned everything from beat-making to anime. By the late 2000s, his ability to incorporate jazz, hip-hop, and nebulous, futuristic elements had established him within LA's famed Low End Theory and beyond. While he himself signed to the famous Warp Records label, Ellison began a label of his own, Brainfeeder, putting out music by Grammy-recognized artists such as Thundercat, George Clinton, Kamasi Washington, and Hiatus Kaiyote. 

Thanks to his passion for animation, experimental films, and the future, Ellison’s visual output has been equally as expansive, provocative, and avant-garde. His live sets draw acclaim for their immersive visuals that perfectly complement his genre defying music; sophisticated visual projections, stunning 3D animations and futuristic light displays blur the lines between music and visual art. This attention to the visual details translates over to the screen as well. He directed Kuso (2016), a body horror film that premiered at Sundance, and served as an executive producer as well as composer for Netflix’s animated series Yasuke, starring Lakeith Stanfield as the titular samurai. Ellison co-wrote, directed and scored a segment for the renowned found footage horror anthology V/H/S/99, and has announced a development deal between his Brainfeeder Films and Paris based Logical Pictures and XYZ Films, to direct and produce a slate of forthcoming projects. In tandem with his musical talents, Ellison’s visual artwork solidifies him as one of the foremost creatives of his time.

Photo Credit: Jen Raoult