Interview: 5 minutes with Flamingosis

Image credit: Dani Barbieri

Releasing his first album in over four years, music producer Flamingosis has left us in awe with his latest album Daymaker via Kahuna Style. Laidback and transcendent is the best way to describe this masterful full-length work, and we cannot wait to hear this magical culmination of influence live this Fall. Working with a range of noteworthy session musicians like Jeff Franca, who has worked with Thievery Corporation , the result is an album that is a magical lo-fi funk that leaves one feeling like they are drifting towards the sunshine.

We chatted with renowned musician Flamingosis below.

Sum up your year so far in two words.

Bright moments.

 You released several albums in the year 2016, and another one five years later. What motivated you to do so?

Once the pandemic hit, I became very motivated in creating and working on more music than normal. I was making a new beat almost every day.  By the time summer hit, I was finished with enough tracks to put out a new album. I wanted to use my time staying indoors to work on something positive.

Tell us more about how your latest/upcoming release was conceptualised?

It took me a few years to figure out how I wanted the album to sound and feel.  Sampling is a big part of my music, so I wanted to keep that element, but also add some live instrumentation into the mix to create a hybrid of sorts.  Worked with a lot of great musicians such as Mike Tallman, Borahm Lee, Recess (Ian Gilley and Drew Birch), Hunter Roberts and Jeff Franca to make that happen.  And the way that I structured and formatted the tracks was to make it feel like it goes from morning to night time, from beginning to end.  Hence the name Daymaker.  I also incorporated some old frisbee interview recordings of my dad and my uncle throughout the album to pay homage to their frisbee freestyle legacy.

Describe a typical day in your studio space.

I don’t have a studio, but when I’m in the mood to create I’ll listen to a lot of different music on YouTube.  And once I hear something that really moves me, I’ll sample it on Ableton, chop it up and start making a beat out of it.  I try to finish it the day I start it because the momentum and inspiration are all there.  Everything is made on my MacBook. 

What are the most important pieces of equipment for you?

My laptop and my brain.

Describe what an ideal day would be for you?

Go to the bodega to get a breakfast sandwich, make some coffee, play some video games and make some music at the apartment, shop for some vinyl records, then go to the park and have a beer.

Do you have a favourite memory of your career so far that you will take with you forever?

Touring Asia.  The people over there showed so much love.  They understood my music in such a deep way.  Don’t know how to describe it in words other than that.  Also, I’m grateful to have travelled to places like South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Thailand etc.  Grateful to have explored and gotten out into the world a little more before the pandemic hit.

You will be touring again soon after several months of isolation, how do you feel about this?

I’m pretty anxious and nervous about this. It will be my first time touring around the country again in a year and a half. Most of that time was spent staying inside, social distancing, playing Super Smash Bros and making music at my apartment. So going out and playing around people again will definitely feel weird at first. But at the same time, I’m excited about it! It’s gonna feel really good performing the album in front of an audience after so long.

Who is your musical guilty pleasure?

The Backyardigans.

What can we expect from you in the near future? 

Working on some songs instead of just beats.  Working with my friend Ehiorobo who’s an incredible singer.  I’m also trying to sing on some tracks as well.  We’ll see how that goes.

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