Grand Theft Auto V is already getting that Avatar money. Last week when the game dropped, it instantly made a sonic book on pop culture, from Shaolin to Singapore. It broke the $1 billion mark after just three days. Clearly, James Cameron is in the wrong business.
Beyond the gameplay and magnetic sleaz of the series, the soundtrack has always been as important as the story. From coked out New Wave in Vice City to gritty boom-bap in Liberty City, the tunes match the mood of the environment. GTA5 is set in a world that resembles Los Angeles, but isn’t exactly LA—there’s parts of Vegas, SoCal and NorCal. The Flying Lotus station—FlyLo FM—is as eclectic as the space between the desert and the mountains, the whores and Cripped up Capos.
At 40 minutes long (in the game), his station is slightly short, but he still manages to keep things eclectic and always weird. Tyler the Creator, Clams Casino, Aphex Twin, and Outkast all make appearances, as well as some of FlyLo’s own tracks.
Some of the best parts of the station are the call-ins. At one point, a dude that sounds like Carl from Aqua Teen Hunger Force gets on the horn to heckle FlyLo: “I’m calling in to request any music that ain’t this. Stop playing everything you’ve been playing cause you’re music sounds like a dumpster rolling down 5 flights of stairs.”
In a recent interview with Pitchfork, FlyLo geeked out, talking about how this latest game is a different beast. “In the past, I usually just fucking do whatever, but I actually care about the story this time,” he said. “I want to see where it goes. But today, for a little bit, I’m gonna drive around and rob people and do dirty, horrible things for money.”
When you’re riding out to FlyLo beats, it can make sordid shit seem oddly beautiful.