Flying Lotus Remixes a Queen Deep Cut on “Night Grows Pale”

Nobody in electronic music is currently as skilled as Flying Lotus at straddling avant-garde and populist territories. On one end of the spectrum, he’s behind the most aggressively un-quantized digital drums in history, the most successful attempts at bringing free jazz into the 22nd Century, and cinema that’s ambitious in its desire to gross you out. On the other, he frequently works with A-list rapper Kendrick Lamar, routinely whips festival crowds into frenzies, and regularly remixes rap hits from Rick Ross’ “Hold Me Back” to Gucci Mane’s “Photoshoot.”

This week, FlyLo seems especially committed to pleasing the masses. Yesterday, video surfaced of him remixing the Twin Peaks theme song at a festival in Seattle (and later blending it with Lil Uzi Vert’s radio hit “XO Tour Llif3”), and today, he’s remixed a track by none other than Queen. “Night Grows Pale,” as the song is titled on FlyLo’s Soundcloud page, is built around a sample of “White Queen (As It Began)” from 1974’s Queen II. 

We’ve known of the Brainfeeder boss’ fondness for Freddie Mercury and Co. since he began playing Sheer Heart Attack’s “Brighton Rock” before his shows on 2014’s You’re Dead! Tour, but this remix reveals a different side of his connection with the band. “Brighton Rock,” what with its hyperactive arrangement and virtuosic performance, made sense when paired with You’re Dead!’s jazz sensibilities, but the soft introduction to “White Queen” that FlyLo loops here appeals more to the side of him that’s gently remixed J Dilla’s “Fall In Love” and made jazzy trip-hop with Laura Darlington in the past.

Whatever audience he’s aiming for, and whatever mood is propelling him, FlyLo always seems to excel. Be on the lookout for more new music from him, and while you wait, snag a free download of his Twin Peaks remix.