avant-funk?????

You'd probably also like John Scofield's "A Go-Go" with
Medeski, Martin and Wood for something more recent.

Don Cherry: 'Brown Rice'
Joe McPhee: 'Nation Time'
Luther Thomas Human Arts Ensemble: 'Funky Donkey'
Sun Ra: 'Lanquidity'
Miles Davis: 'Black Magus', 'On the Corner', 'Get up With It'
Larry Young: 'Lawrence of Arabia'

..are a few that come to mind. A little more 'jazz' than funk for the most part, but good stuff. Joe McPhee and Luther Thomas somehow accomplished the feat of creating funky free-jazz, and there's a number of musicians/groups that are part of that particular scene who created some great stuff with the same kind of sound. A lot of the electric early '70's fusion that was part of the 'kozmigroov' sound/scene (and that includes the Herbie Hancock stuff from that era, as previously mentioned, as well as the Miles and Larry Young on my list) provide a very appropriate definition of a certain kind of 'avant-funk'. For detailed Kozmigroov information and recommendations, check out this link at Kozmigroov at FreeForm

Ronald Shannon Jackson and the Decoding Society W/Vernon Reid before Living Color.

Defunkt w/Joseph Bowie, Lester's brother

James Blood Ulmer

Ornette Coleman's Primetime Band

M'Base stuff

All the above are really good.

Meisterkleef,
Scofield's "A go-go" is rather classic funk than avant-funk that has its primary roots from New York underground world.

wow, thanks guys.