Hear Thundercat’s Incisive New Song ‘Bus in These Streets’

Thundercat has released a clever new song “Bus in These Streets,” in which the bassist portrays the blandness of the tech-consumed existence with a cheerful melody.

The track finds Thundercat putting a peppy spin on his dusty, funked-out tunes. He juxtaposes playful chimes and vocal harmonies reminiscent of children’s music with his signature dug-from-the-crates strangeness. Thundercat’s soothing falsetto is the song’s fitting capstone, especially when he puts a jovial bent on lines like: “Thank God for technology cause where would we be if we couldn’t tweet our thoughts?”

“Bus In These Streets” features contributions from Louis Cole (keys, drums, programming) and Flying Lotus (programming, editing). The song marks Thundercat’s first new track since his 2015 mini-album, The Beyond / Where the Giants Roam. 

Thundercat has a handful of upcoming live dates, including a set at the Afropunk Festival in Brooklyn August 27th, and three concerts in California hosted by Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder label. The gigs will feature both Thundercat and FlyLo, as well as George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic, Shabazz Palaces and the Gaslamp Killer. The first two gigs will take place at the Fox Theatre in Oakland September 15th and 16th (the latter is sold out), followed by a show at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on the 17th.