As Louis Cole prepares the launch of his collaborative album nothing, recorded with the Metropole Orkest under the baton of Jules Buckley, some will wonder if this is the story of a funk-and-jazz-musician who's suddenly discovered classical music? But although Cole is often regarded as one of the leaders of “the new music counter culture” of jazz, funk and electronica, he has never committed himself to just one sound, and just one scene, or vowed to keep his music pure. “There's a whole universe of music out there. I've got to explore everything,” he says. “I'm going to extremes because I'm trying to max out my spiritual energy… That naturally leads to polar sounding results.” 

The biography of Louis Cole is not the story of one massive viral hit, although it is sometimes told that way. Of course, the one-and-a-half minute short “Bank Account” did make the world listen. Within days, John Mayer had shared it with his followers, Björk was vibing to it, and the Red Hot Chilli Peppers liked it so much that they invited Louis to tour with them.

But by the time the song broke, Louis already had 6 albums under his belt and was about to release Time, his first record on Brainfeeder. This was neither the beginning, nor was it anywhere near the destination. He had simply followed through on a piece of advice given to him by Patreon founder Jack Conte: to put all of his music up on Youtube and stop worrying about the rest. Ever since, Cole has done just that, facing the world with a motto that keeps him from taking things too serious: “Doesn't matter.”

As self-assured as his songs sound, this is not the story of an artist who always knew exactly what he wanted out of life. Cole had grown up with a deep love for the boisterous beats of Buddy Rich, the sonic blasts of Tony Williams, and the steam and sweat of James Brown, whose records he listened to and studied religiously. At the same time, he also admired Mozart, Mahler, and the way composer Morten Lauridsen layered and stacked choral voices. But even by the time he entered USC as a jazz drummer, he still wasn't sure this was truly his calling. 

To get a bigger picture, on top of his curriculum, he took evening courses, learning to score for film and played on a toy drum set in his dorm room which he had bought on ebay - a decision which would teach him to get a big, powerful sound off an almost primitive set-up. Complexity and maximum emotional immediacy were always two sides of the same coin for him and his first two albums, self-released and published without any promotional support, put this inner conflict on full display. It was a bold move, partly facilitated by the assumption, as Cole admits, that “no one would listen to those records anyway.”

Of course, that's not how things panned out and many would end up inspired by those albums. Since then, his audience has continued to steadily grow, leading up to the release of 2022's Quality over Opinion, a sprawling, yet remarkably focused 70-minute journey which gathered worldwide acclaim. The record's 20 compositions acted like a sum and summary of his work, while taking his production, performance, and composition skills to a new level. The GRAMMY jury agreed, nominating both Quality over Opinion and its slow-burning, epic ballad “Let it Happen” in “Best Alternative Jazz Album” and “Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals” respectively.

And yet, this certainly isn't the story of a carefully designed career. DIY has always been the way for Louis, and rather than trying to fit in with a scene, or using collaborations to further his reputation, he has instead preferred to jam, compose, and perform with a network of friends who “just happen to be amazing musicians”. Among them have been pianist Brad Mehldau, bassist Thundercat, saxophonist Sam Gendel, drummer Nate Wood, and keyboardist DOMi Louna (of DOMi & JD Beck).

And there is, of course, the special bond with his KNOWER partner Genevieve Artadi, who, just as on his previous full-lengths, also features on his newest album nothing, and whose voice has a naked, raw quality that effortlessly cuts through Cole's walls of sound. The KNOWER discography is not so much a counterpoint to his solo work, but a world located at another quadrant of the same galaxy. They feed off and complement each other, using different codes to decrypt the eternal transmissions of funk, groove and swing.

Whatever your angle, one thing is abundantly clear: that for Cole, life and art cannot be separated, and furthermore, the music always comes first. As he's freely admitted, he can mostly be found at home, where he still spends hours practising and learning new instruments, recording his music and planning his gigs, including the upcoming shows with the Metropole Orkest in Europe. The latter will see him take nothing through venues internationally, notably at Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw in October 2024.

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