Thundercat and Flying Lotus take over the Tabernacle

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? Towering over a swarming crowd, sporting a jacket fit for Freddie Mercury, and wielding his bass like a six-stringed Excalibur, Thundercat yells, "We're home!"?

Performing at the Tabernacle on Sat., Oct. 11, both Flying Lotus (affectionally referred to as FlyLo) and touring companion/label mate Thundercat are nearly on the opposite side of home. Both artists hail from Los Angeles, where Flying Lotus' Brainfeeder label has etched out a thriving scene for experimental rappers, beatmakers, and musicians. FlyLo manages to find comfort in all three.?

Thundercat, on the other hand, is a musician to the bone. That fact is evident within the first few minutes of the ex-Suicidal Tendencies bassist's onslaught of soulful shredding and hypnotic chord changes. Thundercat's style finds an affinity with the breakneck jazz fusion of bass deities like Jaco Pastorius and Stanley Clarke. Even attaining the technical prowess necessary to rip off such legends is a feat in itself, but Thundercat's brand of virtuoso playing sets a new standard for what is possible on the bass and beyond.?????

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? His set throws in a pleasant mix of high-speed fusion workouts such as "Fleer Ultra" slow-burning buildups such as "Heartbreaks + Setbacks," and finely-tuned pop anthems such as "Oh Sheit, It's X." The greatest pleasure in his set comes from the improvisatory reworking of nearly every song he plays. Most notably, the usually mellow "Tron Song" is transformed into a sprawling playground for Thundercat and his fellow bandmates, only a keyboardist and a drummer, to flex their improv muscles.?

Staying true to his namesake, Thundercat even works in cartoon fan service with a spaced-out rendition of songwriter Ashley Eriksson's "Island Song," the closing theme to Cartoon Network's lauded "Adventure Time." Thundercat's blend of technical mastery and free-wheeling imagination allow him to breathe new life into both jazz and electronic music.?

After getting lost in FlyLo's recent jazz freakout journey through the afterlife, You're Dead!, I was curious to see if his live set would abandon his penchant for booming, beat-driven tracks. FlyLo and Thundercat played in Atlanta last year where the producer paid tribute to Atlanta's trap and crunk influences with a selection of beats that were inexplicably club-banging and thought-provoking.??

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? This time around, his emphasis on movement over ambiance is even more exaggerated. He incorporates very few of the tracks from You're Dead!, save for standouts like the superb "Never Catch Me Now" and Snoop Dogg collab, "Dead Man's Tetris." I can't say there isn't a part of me that pines for a FlyLo set that lets his most experimental side shine, but looking over the sea of dancing bodies, it's easy to understand his choice. FlyLo is equal parts artist and entertainer.?

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? The first thing that captures my attention isn't even his music, it's the gigantic, see-through cube that surrounds FlyLo. The cube flanks him on all sides, allowing complex projections to swirl around, producing a mesmerizing-yet-chaotic 3D view. He uses his psychedelic projection cube to maximum effect, incorporating the bloody brilliance of artist Shintaro Kago in addition to geometric patterns of FlyLo's own design.?

Whereas Thundercat's set sounds like it was born on a comet whizzing through space, FlyLo is clearly aware he's playing to Atlanta's hip-hop legacy. Skull-crushing bass dominates his set with rhythms that gleefully play with the slowed down pulse so beloved by trap producers. While FlyLo's set lacks the intense eye candy of Thundercat tearing his fingers up and down his bass, the producer's ability to blend his established singles with low-end heavy beats is equally as captivating.??

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? Some of strongest moments during FlyLo's set come when he exits his cube stronghold and prowls the stage as his snarling rapping alter ego Captain Murphy. While these verses on You're Dead! were overshadowed by other rappers, some of FlyLo's most memorable tracks, such as the spellbinding "Between Friends," come from Murphy's twisted mind.?

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? Both FlyLo and Thundercat are emblematic of a wildly vibrant family of musicians that push the limits of what people think of as jazz, hip-hop, and electronic music, all while keeping the efficacy of a good hook at heart.?

If Atlanta is their second home, I welcome them to stay.??